Operation: Get Derek
by Green Peridot
Summary: A new girl moves into the school, and she gets off on the wrong foot with Derek. Casey and Scarlett team up to put Derek in his place, but an unforseen problem interferes with their schemes. Give it a chance, huh? Dasey isn't the only light of the world.
1. Moving and Screams

Operation: Get Derek

Summary: Well, in this story, a girl named Scarlett gets transferred from Florida to Toronto, she meets an egotistical and magnetic jerk. After storming off, she fortunately meets the only onther person who feels the same way: the guy's stepsister, Casey. Together, the become fast friends, and come up with a plan full of devilry to give Derek back some of his own. But as their plan goes to new levels, Scarlett is feeling something akin to guilt. But why? She hates Derek... she _has _to hate Derek! Not a Dasey- sorry, peoples, but I have to have something to make me feel original! Don't get me wrong: I LOVE Dasey stories, but something outta the ordinary can't hurt, right?

Note: I'm probably not going to acknowledge Emily's existence in this story. I don't have anything against her- she just wouldn't work with this plot.

Disclaimer: I don't own LWD. Do you think that if I did I'd be sitting here messing with a fic? Use your head! I'd be writing the script for the next show!

This will be switching back and forth through various people's POV, but not in first person. Italics usually mean thoughts (or it can means that it's an emphasized word), bold means I'm commenting, and a flashback will be in italics too. I don't think it's quite rocket science, but… If I make a mistake or I'm muddling the whole thing, tell me!

A warning: I'm not a fast paced writer, and there's two to one odds that I'll get bored of the story or decide I don't like I before I get to any good parts. Also, this is my first official FF, so I'm terrified that I'm doing it wrong or violating some unwritten code. Please be nice!

* * *

Moving, Laughs, and Screams

"_Moving?!"_

Her parents shifted uncomfortably. Before they could say anything, she screeched again.

"_Moving?! _How could you _do _this to me?!"

There was another tight silence.

"All of a sudden, you just up and leave? I'm in my junior year! It's going to be _horrible_ to go to a new school! Did you even _think_ about me? Did you?"

No, they didn't, she knew. Her parents never thought about her unless they had to.

She paced around the room, muttering the cursed word under her breath. Then suddenly she sat down on the couch, sinking her head in her hands.

Her parents waited patiently. This was always the way it went when Scarlett was disappointed or got angry. She exploded, then went all silent (thinking), and then she tried to reason a way out of it or just accepted it.

After several minutes passed she sighed heavily and looked up, her green eyes flicking back and forth from mother to father. "Father finally find a place that'll pay him?" she asked, quietly, as if it were unbelievable.

Her father stiffened, and her mother put a hand on him. "Yes, dear. We need the money. Just living on my work at home income isn't enough to keep a house or keep you in school."

"Would be if he didn't drink," she muttered under her breath. Her father opened his mouth, but she continued on before he could voice the protest. "Where are we going?"

"Toronto, Canada," said her mother in a small voice.

There was a pregnant silence. Then Scarlett spoke again in a tightly restrained voice. "I suppose we would have to go far enough away to escape his reputation," she said. "Maybe we should change our identities while we're at it." Then she stood up and strode out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

Her drunk father turned to her mother and said, "You know, that's not a bad idea," just as she walked out.

Scarlett rolled her eyes at his stupidity, and sighed. Drunkard or no, he was her father, and she had little choice about her lineage.

Scarlett hoped that she would be able to escape the influence of her father's genes. She shuddered. Maybe her mother had been unfaithful? Please…

She went up to her room and flopped onto the bed. Toronto. Canada. A new school full of new, judgmental people, and a new house. Just when she finally thought things were permanent.

For the last few years she had enjoyed relative stability. She had entered high school, circled among the future top dogs of the school while they were freshman (therefore securing her future), and earned decent grades.

In tenth grade she spread out her net to gain popularity, and focused on passing.

Here, in eleventh, was where she could focus on having fun. The classes were less strict and less stressful, and her popularity was well established. She went on as many dates as she chose with as many guys as she chose, and she was a top invite to all parties.

And now, everything she'd worked for was down the tubes. If she'd known this was going to happen she would have focused on grades and skipped the rest.

Hindsight's twenty-twenty, she thought bitterly, and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

On the opposite side of the continent, Derek Venturi yawned lazily and stretched. He slowly, languidly made his way from his bed to a small vent on the opposite side of his room. He heard the sounds of Casey in the shower, and that was what woke him up. 

Derek pulled a little lever on the vent, and listened to her in the shower. She was humming softly, and she was apparently just rinsing off the conditioner- the leave in conditioner- and getting out. He began laughing softly to himself.

Casey turned off the shower, and began drying off. Then, apparently, she saw her reflection in the mirror.

Casey's glass-shattering scream was heard throughout the house for a full five minutes.

* * *

Well, that was it for now. I'll take flames, reluctantly, if you really think they're good for me (shudders inside). If it wasn't horrible, plz review, and if I'm sure not ALL of you hate me then I'll get the next chapter up by next week. You'll find out what Derek did to Casey in it, but you might have already guessed. 

I promise it will get more interesting soon. (And I promise I'll have shorter A/Ns!)


	2. Meeting and Scheming

If you want the summary again, read chapter 1's A/N

Disclaimer: Bruschettamine. LWDDisney channel's (or whoever does own it)

Instructions for understanding my font code are also in chapter 1.

Don't ask about the title. I think it was one of my occasional bouts of insanity. sighs I must, unfortunately, humor myself, or it will get far worse. There are my genes for you.

Red Streak meets Green Freak (Eek!)

Scarlett shoved her new books and pens savagely into her locker. The stupid things were tinier than they were at her school, and _that_ had been pushing it. She hadn't been sure if it was dumb to leave her thin jacket at home, but now she was profoundly grateful for her stupidity. (It was always temperate in Florida, but here…)

Scarlett shivered, and examined the goose bumps on her arm with frustration. She looked bad enough this morning (all of her clothes were either still in boxes or smelled of her father and his beer from the trip down). She was wearing black jeans, a white tank, and an oversized black sweater. Then add to that image a bad hair day, an inclination to snap at the least provocation, and goose bumps, and you've got a genuine slob.

She growled angrily at the large zipper binder that refused to fit in. She spent five minutes trying to push it in with her hands. Rapidly sinking into a worse than foul mood, she stood back and aimed a vicious kick directly into the center of the spine of the unfortunate binder. It gave way with a huge ripping sound, and left a long strip of black material behind; and the material was left hooked on the catch of the locker.

Scarlett took a deep breath, and swore loudly and long at the locker. Deciding that she didn't need to use anything in the cursed locker anyways, she aimed another vengeful kick at the door.

However, the strip of material on the catch caused the door to rebound at her. Scarlett had reflex enough to avoid being caught painfully in the shin, but her hasty maneuver cost her her balance, and she fell backwards- right into the strong, waiting, and laughing arms of a tall stranger.

"I'm having a bad enough day already," she snarled, "and if you don't let me go I swear I'll-"

The arms tightened. "You'll what? I think you're supposed to thank me."

"What? For laughing at me and making me look like an idiot?"

"Believe me, no girl seen in my company is an idiot. More along the lines of an envied or coveted hottie," came the arrogant rejoinder from the conceited and mysterious guy.

Scarlett forcibly extricated herself from his grasp and whirled to face her adversary.

As she had first expected, he was tall, muscular, and held himself with a cockiness that either infuriated or attracted girls eleven years old plus. What she had not expected was the most magnetic smirk that she had ever seen, and a pair of deep, rich, chocolate brown eyes that were flecked with crackling gold.

Despite her just anger, her stomach fluttered a little. But there was no change in her stance or her expression- Scarlett would not have herself be so humiliated. "What," she said in a sibilant hiss, "do you want?"

"You sound just like my step sister when I knocked on her door this morning. Though," he said reflectively, "she had cause. But you don't. By the way, who are you?"

"Not gonna give you my real name, and definitely not gonna give you the name I go by," she told him. "Who are _you_?"

He seemed to be extremely shocked. His chocolate-gold eyes widened and he started a little from his indolent pose leaning on the wall. "You don't know who _I _am?" he said, in tones varying from offence to amazement to intrigue.

"Not the slightest clue- except that you are positively the most arrogant, conceited person I've ever met."

"You really sound like my step sis, you know," he told her, resuming his lazy and observative position. "But if you'd been talking to her five minutes, you'd know who I am."

She rolled her eyes. "Fascinated by your life's story, but I'm late for class. Hopefully I won't see you again."

Scarlett removed the strip of cloth, tossed it back in her locker, slammed it shut with an angry punch, and snapped the lock back on all in a single fluid motion. Then she stalked off.

Derek Venturi let his lazy brown eyes fall onto her retreating figure, and watched her hips sway with no little interest. Sure, that huge sweater made her look horrible, but he recalled with enjoyment her small body in his arms, and her muscles rippling under his grasp when she broke away. Hot enough for even his taste if she'd dress better.

Well, she could be trained. A few satirical comments here, a few hints that he wouldn't take her out until she dressed better there… she would shape up quickly.

He hadn't had any major diversions since Kendra last year, and this girl could turn out to be one. So. He didn't know her name, but she had green eyes and dark black hair that had a thin red streak through it that would be easily recognizable.

Derek smirked again. She had to be new, to not know who _he_ was. A hot girl that was new, and therefore very easy to mess with, would be very fun.

Scarlett regretted storming away from her locker about two seconds after she did it. _Controlling your temper is now number one on your to-do list,_ she informed herself. _So what if he's hot, and so what if you don't like his attitude? Idiots like him are easy and fun to use. I could have found my way to my next class with his help. _

The bell rang. Her fists bunched into tight balls at her side. Now this was really bad. _And you wouldn't have been late, _an infuriating voice in the back of her mind pointed out.

Very understandably, she ay that moment began to hate the smirking guy with gold-flecked brown eyes.

Eventually, a teacher saw her wandering around the halls and yelled at her. After forcing back a natural eye roll response, she explained her situation, and was towed to the main office for a new schedule with room numbers actually on it.

After enduring a twenty minute lecture on how the staff was here just to help 'new citizens' in this school, she was sent to English class, which was now almost over.

She ground her teeth as she walked in. The new kid was always the worst kid to be. Before, she'd pitied and despised him. Now she _was_ him, and it bit.

The English teacher was a portly man that looked to be in his early sixties. He had graying hair, scratched glasses that tended to slide down on his nose, and an inclination to move as little as possible.

However, he did have a care for his student's welfare that often became extreme. As long as it did not require movement on his part, he would do his best to help them. All too often, this entailed reforming their characters.

Scarlett shut the door as quietly as she could behind her and bit her lip. The large man swiveled around in his roll chair, and glared at her over the tops of his glasses at her. "Young lady, I assume you are the transfer student. I will tell you that however lenient your American teachers are, we will not bend to accommodate you. I believe your name is-"

"Just call me Scarlett," she said quickly, before her wince worthy first name was made known to the class. "I'd rather you call me that- sir."

He had been about to enumerate upon the improprieties of interrupting the teacher, but was mollified by the added sir, which she had anticipated.

"Well then, young lady, you may sit in the back next to Miss McDonald," he said, pointing to a girl far in the back that was slouched down as far as possible in the seat, and trying to hide her hair.

Scarlett grimaced mentally and made her way to the lab table. She sat down next to the girl, and sighed heavily. Then she chanced a look to her right, and almost choked on her suppressed laugh.

"It's wonderful for you to laugh," snapped Casey. "You don't have to live with it. Hats are against the school code, by the way, or I'd have a bulging ski cap on."

The girl's hair was two shades darker than neon green, and had uneven sickly green-brown streaks permeating it. The whole head reminded her strongly of a pile of barf.

Scarlett attempted to suppress her grin, and failed. "I thought you _wanted _your hair color like that," she said, an edge to her voice telling the irritated Casey just how much she was amused.

"No!" she said vehemently. "My stupid stepbrother-"

A slow grin spread across Scarlett's face. "Did he knock on your door this morning, and you hissed something at him or something like that?"

Casey raised smoldering but diverted eyes to hers. She cocked an eyebrow. "How do you know that?" she asked. Then disgusted understanding came through. "You're one of his little bimbos, aren't you? He certainly didn't waste any time. How long have you been here? Two days?"

"Actually I saw him once, and hated his guts. I don't know what his name is, but I gather you do nothing but complain about him, and with good reason, as far as I can tell."

Casey's eyes glinted with malevolence. "You have _no_ idea," she said in a voice rife with loathing.

"I'm assuming that he's responsible for the green hair?"

"Who else?" she asked, exasperated. "The mighty Derek Venturi strikes again! And _I _get blamed for throwing a vase at his head for his comment on how my hair went with my eyes!"

Scarlett's face convulsed, and she had to take a few seconds to control herself.

Casey eyed her with extreme displeasure. "You don't have Derek for your stepbrother."

She admitted this was true, and paused. A diabolical little scheme was beginning to percolate into her mind. "Hold on," she said. "I think I'm getting an idea. Meet me after seventh period just outside the school. We need to talk about this."

Casey began to look interested. "You mean- a Derek idea? You hate him too?" Her voice was understandably disbelieving.

Scarlett smiled. "I wouldn't say hate. But I do know that he needs a major set down, and that I'll be happy to help administer it. But don't talk! I need time to think uninterrupted."

Casey was about ready to burst with curiosity, but encountered a darkling look from Mr. Kinese, and subsided.

Scarlett did not pay attention to a word of the rest of the class. Her mind was miles elsewhere, planning.

After school Scarlett waited on the wall near the entrance. She was sitting against the railing on the stairs, with one leg pulled up meditatively to her chest, and the other stretched down comfortably.

Casey came out ten minutes after the bell rang, and sat down hesitantly next to her. Scarlett was chewing on her lip, her eyes unfocused. Suddenly she said, "You're late. What, were you like kissing up to a teacher to add a plus to your A?" Casey flushed slightly, and she raised her eyebrows. "You really were? Well, I guess it's your life, but you don't need straight A's to get into a nice college. You're what, already one grade ahead?"

Casey was gratified. "Well, no, but I would if we wouldn't have moved."

"Thought so," she said frankly. "But then if you were a senior right now, I wouldn't be able to help you wage war with Derek. Or not as well. Just listen, okay?"

Casey's eyes widened as Scarlett outlined a vague plan containing beating Derek at his own game, putting him in his place, and teaching him to do something other than think of himself. There were no specifics, but that was Scarlett all over again. She was the inspiration and the details- someone else did the basics.

That suited Casey. But, there was something she didn't get. "If you've met Derek, he's already tried to hit on you by now. It takes about two seconds for him, especially with girls like you. Why would _you _hate him?"

"Let's just say I didn't like him the second I saw him. I don't care to go into the details."

Casey smiled. "No one else gets it," she said, "but you do! We can expose how much of an idiot he is!"

Then her eyes turned thoughtful as she looked at Scarlett. "Is that your only type of outfit?" she asked suddenly.

"No, this is a throw together because all of my stuff is in boxes or dirty. Why?"

"Because he's bound to run after you. You're just one of those girls. And that puts you- more accurately, _us_- in power. We can twist him around our fingers easily."

"I like how you think," announced Scarlett. "Knew you'd make a good friend. Let's get him."

"The first step is to get Derek into skirt chasing mode. Where's your house?"

Scarlett's house was several miles from the school, and the most apt way to describe it would be a huge, rotting wooden mansion.

The lot it stood on was huge, and ill kept. Weeds grew waist high everywhere that they were not killed by trash, old or recent. There was debris from hundreds of years ago spread out on the grass, along with topical rubbish from their recent move.

Casey began to have a sinking notion that Scarlett was dirt poor. There was nothing wrong with that, of course; but it would effectively render their plan hopeless.

Scarlett directed an apologetic glance at Casey as they entered the house. "My parents needed something large and cheap for their business stuff. The house is terrible, but my grandparents provided money to make my part of it habitable. The good thing about this place is that every person has his own suite- or two, if he wants them. So I had my suite fixed up. I'm still working on installing a door to the outside from it."

Casey cast a doubtful glance around her. This? Everything was rotten, and it _stunk_! Unless Scarlett had understated the 'fixing,' they were still doomed.

From the dark, dank and peeling hallway she suddenly veered off into a side room. There was an abrupt, stark and amazing difference between the two rooms.

She was surrounded by the scent of sweet potpourri, and the entire area was bathed in warm golden light. The walls were freshly painted a sophisticated golden tan, and the floor was mirror bright wood with a fresh layer of wax on it. There was a large fireplace at the opposite end of the room with a large plasma television hung above it, and large French floor length windows were on either side of the whole affair.

There were two large, plush leather couches on either side of the door they just came through, and two large easy chairs were situated next to the couches symmetrically. Unlit candles that bore signs of use sat on end tables in between the couch and chairs.

Scarlett gestured at the candles with a sigh. "Electricity around here has a mind of its own. I was surprised to find out that doing my homework by candlelight was not as romantic as it first sounded."

Casey chuckled aloud and wondered at it. How long had she gone without laughing for real, and not sarcastically? She couldn't remember.

"Are you all right?" asked Scarlett, her voice breaking her reverie.

"Huh?" she asked quickly, startled.

"You had an odd expression on your face. Never mind. My little suite here isn't much, but I love it. This room, my bedroom, a master bath, and a kitchenette. Feel free to poke around while I see if I can whip anything up in the kitchen- you look like you need a moment, and I feel like I need a snack."

Casey smiled at that and paused hesitantly when Scarlett exited the room. _Well, she said I could poke around, _she reasoned with herself. _And I _am_ curious. _

So she walked over to another door, and opened it softly.

This room was much darker, but not for lack of windows. Currently silky and gossamer curtains were spread over two huge bay windows. When she peeked around them, she saw three tiers of lush green houseplants arranged prettily in a semicircle, basking in the warmth from the sun on the ledge.

The carpet underneath her feet was thick and plush, a deep cherry red color. There were several items in the room, including a large queen sized canopy bed, what must have been the mirrored entrance to a walk in closet, a bookshelf, and a knick-knack shelf. On the shelf there were all sorts of odd trinkets and mementos from travel, among any number of photographs of teenagers in soccer uniforms smiling at the camera. Also, off to the side, was a face down frame. Casey reached over to pick it up, but just then she became conscious of a strange whirring and bubbling sound.

She cocked an ear, and listened carefully. It was not loud, but low, insistent and soothing. Slowly she traced the sound to its source in the far corner of the room.

"Wow," she breathed, and pressed her face against the glass.

In the darkened scenery she could distinguish a myriad of darting shapes and waving tentacles. It was a huge, unlit saltwater aquarium.

"Wow," she said again, and reached out to tap on the glass at a fish that had paused in its rapid and erratic progress in the tank.

With a loud POP there was a brilliant burst of light. Or at least, that was what she thought. When her eyes adjusted, she found it was only a single bluish tinted light. It just seemed really bright because she had her nose all up in it.

She looked at it again, and was agreeably surprised. There were actually two tanks, situated side by side in the wall with a half an inch of glass separating them. The rocks in them were situated in a way that made it seem the two tanks were really just a continuation of one. So were the rolling sand dunes.

What was absolutely fascinating about it was the many odd shaped, brilliantly colored corals. With Casey's limited knowledge, she was only able to identify an anemone and several Nemos- clownfishes.

"The corals will be even more amazing after they unfold," said a voice in the doorway.

Casey straightened self-consciously and guiltily. "It's very… strange," she said, trying to find a more complimentary way to say _What is a teenager doing with a fish tank?_

Scarlett picked up on this, and grinned. "I love watching my miniature reef grow," she said. "There's no better way to describe it. I can watch my fish tanks for hours on end. Anyways, enough about my weird obsessions! I have tea here- ooh, another weird thing about me. Do you drink tea?"

"Yes," admitted Casey. "I like it a lot."

"You are now my best friend," announced Scarlett. "Here's your tea. If you're a connoisseur you'll be able to guess what it is, though it's fairly rare."

Casey took one sip, and smiled. "Mango Ceylon, by the republic of tea."

Scarlett rolled her eyes. "Know it all," she remarked, and set her tea on the desk and plopped onto her bed. "Sit!" she commanded. "Or plop, if you like. It's a good bed to plop on. We have to sketch out our plan."

Casey put her tea down next to Scarlett's and sat neatly down on the plush bed.

Scarlett sighed. "I swear you've never plopped on a bed in your life. We'll have to work on it. Drinking tea brings to mind a prim, sour faced old ex-nun, and you need to have plenty to counteract that image. Ek!" she said suddenly. "I always get sidetracked onto another subject. Start talking about what we're gonna do, and I'll write it down."

They passed five pleasant hours laughing in delight over the many fiendish schemes devised to wither the currently oblivious Derek Venturi. It was fun, because the options were limitless. Once Scarlett had him on her string, anything could happen.

_And that anything is going to be hilarious, _thought Scarlett maliciously, looking at her notebook.

Well, that's all folks. Please review… please…

I'd get down on my knees and beg, but that doesn't really work while on the internet.

You get the idea…


	3. The Bait

Yay! Reviews! Thank you so much Aye sea turtles and napd567!!!

I don't particularly like this chapter. It makes both Derek and Scarlett into people I didn't really want them to be in this story. I hope that I can fix it- I wasn't able to find any other way to accomplish the purpose of the chapter. Well, this is what happens when you try to write with Writer's Block. (ohhh, the dreaded Block… -shakes fist-)

Disclaimer: Once and for all, I don't own LWD. I'm getting tired of trying to invent cool disclaimers, so this is the last one.

I tried to go without labeling whose perspective things were from, but it confused me (and I wrote it!), so I'm going to label the POVs.

Is Derek out of character? Be honest! I'm trying to get this right…

* * *

The Bait

**Scarlett's POV**

Apparently, to get Derek into skirt chasing mode, the skirt had to be short.

Scarlett looked with distaste at the fringed, dark blue denim skirt, and the low necked black and grey striped cami. Yes, the skirt showed off her long bronze legs, and yes, the cami revealed her muscular tone and trim waist. _And, _she thought impartially, _it makes me look like a slut. If I saw myself walking down the street I'd call me a whore- loudly. _Both items had been purchased at separate points for the express purpose of inspiring natural matronly indignation in her mother's breast. She had worn them both, with no result. And when she pushed her mother closer, she'd said distractedly, "Yes, yes, very nice outfit, dear." Since they had not elicited the desired reaction and were never really meant to be worn, they had been tossed into the bottom of her closet. Scarlett would never wear this type of thing- it looked like a NY prostitute costume.

"I am such a hypocrite," she said brokenly to her fish tanks. Scarlett leaned in closer to get up in her lionfish's face. He looked at her with a cold, disdainful stare, and lazily fanned out his already impressive venomous fins in cool warning.

"Watch yourself, mister," she warned. "I feed you."

She could almost imagine his disdain, and swore he rolled his eyes at her.

_I, _she realized suddenly, _am crazy. _

Sighing, and apparently reconciled to the fact, she walked out the door.

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School was progressing well so far. In first period, History, Casey had given her the thumbs up. Scarlett kindly refrained from mocking her still-green hair, realizing the poor girl had probably been up all night trying to scrub the coloring out. _It _is_ two shades closer to brown, _she thought compassionately.

According to her schedule, Derek would be in three of her classes. The first of these was History, with the strict and sour (but yet funny) Miss Pennyloaf.

Miss Pennyloaf was actually only in her late twenties. She had blonde-brown hair, a very attractive physique, and a glare that would set the most stalwart of student's knees knocking.

When Scarlett walked in, Miss Pennyloaf raised a sculpted eyebrow but said nothing.

Scarlett would have preferred a word of reproof, for that she could have handled better. She turned red, for Miss Pennyloaf was a person she'd decided she respected. Saying nothing, she slid into her seat in the middle of the class.

She was early. Derek was not. He walked in two seconds after the bell rang, with a big smile on his face and remnants of a lipstick mark near his mouth.

Immediately Scarlett was furious. Why should she be furious? _Curse the guy,_ she thought angrily. _I don't know why I'm so… whatever I am._

However, Scarlett did not forget their plans. Purposefully, she knocked her pencil across the floor and rose to get it.

She was gratified with the knowledge that Derek (and, unfortunately, every guy in the room) was watching her, an arrested expression on his face.

She started to bend over but stopped when a different pencil was handed to her. The holder was a guy with black hair and alluring blue eyes, and who was openly appraising her. She smiled provocatively. "Thanks," she said, and took it, returning to her chair.

Scarlett could scarcely have planned it better. Unknown to her, the pencil guy was Mitchell Howard (on the gymnastics team), and the only competition Derek had in the school for the spot of most popular guy in school. The second she smiled at him, she raised her image in Derek's mind from a mildly interested _she's hot,_ to a competitive _She's mine._

Derek glared at the nerd sitting in the desk next to Scarlett. It took the idiot thirty seconds to get it, and then he pushed up his glasses in an embarrassed way, and got up.

He smirked and disposed himself across the chair, openly looking at Scarlett.

She found it infuriating. Her anger could not be expressed, because she was supposed to be _attracting _him, not beating him up. She couldn't listen to a word Miss Pennyloaf was saying.

Finally, she turned to face him, and found herself confronting twin jewels that glowed brown and gold.

_Mmmm, _she thought. _Chocolate brownies with caramel…_

To hide her reaction from both him and herself, she raised an eyebrow at him. "Got a problem?"

"Not anymore," he replied.

She rolled her eyes at him, and focused on Miss Pennyloaf.

Then she felt a hand on her lower back. "Whoever is touching me," she said in an acid whisper, "has two seconds to stop."

The guy behind her only laughed. What choice did she have?

So, Scarlett rose out of her chair, turned around, and socked the stupidly grinning guy directly on the jaw. He hit the floor from the impact.

"Miss Lake," came an icy voice from the front, quelling most of the sniggers permeating the classroom. Scarlett turned her blazing green eyes towards the teacher. She would have sworn that Pennyloaf was trying not to grin. "If you want to dress in that style, you must want the style of attention that goes with it. Violence in this school is prohibited. I don't have the time to deal with you, so you will go to the office to discuss this with the principal."

"She doesn't know where it is," came Derek's lazy voice. It was heavily laced with amusement. "I'll take her."

Miss Pennyloaf considered for a minute, and then nodded curtly.

Suddenly her stomach was tying itself into knots. _Calm down, _she ordered herself. _This is a good thing. You bet Casey he'd ask you out before the day ended, and this is a step in the right direction._

Once in the hallway, Scarlett didn't let him start. "You think you can just-"

"Don't bother," he interrupted. "You look a lot better than you did yesterday. I wonder why?"

Scarlett flushed. This had not been anticipated.

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**Derek's POV**

Derek wondered at her. Her flirtatious expression was at extreme variance with the angry spark in her eyes. _But the combination is awesome, _he thought, amused. "You look stunning when you're angry," he said.

He watched, intrigued, as the pink hue to her cheeks turned bright red.

"I'm glad you think so," she said.

Again, the contradiction. Her voice was like any other girl's that was interested in him, but her eyes flashed disdain.

_Hey eyes are gorgeous, _he thought suddenly.

With any other girl he would have kissed her. But Casey had never known the intelligence behind the carefully maintained face of Derek Venturi. Something in Scarlett's mysteriously angry green eyes told him that kissing her would be a fatal mistake.

"During free period, you should come and watch me dominate the hockey rink."

"And if I don't?"

"Then I'll have to track you down and drag you there," he replied.

He was gratified by a low laugh. Derek read the surprise in her face just as easily as he'd detected the anger.

Then, suddenly, she smiled at him. "I'll be there," she said.

Derek ignored the triumphant leap in his stomach, and smirked.

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-Free Period-

**Scarlett's POV**

Scarlett watched Derek closely as he slipped past the defense easily and sent the puck into the net with a neat crack.

There was an arrogance, an assurance to his movements that was as aggravating to Scarlett as it was magnetic. It reinforced in her mind the need to snag him.

Leaning back against the row of bleachers behind her, she settled back to think. Derek was most likely going to eat lunch with her, so a tête-à-tête with Casey to review things was impossible.

Just then, the buzzer sounded, and Derek, seeing her, pulled up to the edge near her. Scarlett smiled at him and got up. "You looked good out there," she said.

"Usually do," he said.

She forced down a witty retort and smiled at him. "Wanna eat lunch with me?"

Lunch passed surprisingly agreeably. Derek actually _talked _with her- she had a meaningful conversation, and he made her laugh. _Casey exaggerated how horrible he is, _she thought, _but he still deserves to be put in place. He keeps looking at me like I'm a video game or something. _

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**Derek's POV**

Derek was intrigued. Never before had he _talked_ with a girl that wore the kind of clothes Scarlett had on, and even more appalling, he was _enjoying _it.

_Ok, dude, _he thought to himself. _This is the last straw. You're the most wanted guy in school. You're the most successful Player out of all the sports in the school. Get a grip, and act yourself._

He stretched backwards lazily, watching her talk to him with her face lighting up, and then darkening, her hands gesturing fluidly. Eventually she must have come to a point where he was required to respond, because he heard her say, with a disgusted chuckle:

"Well, I spose that's what happens when I let myself run my mouth."

"Sorry," he said, not meaning it.

She raised her eyebrows and cocked her head. "So you _were_ listening."

"No, not really," he replied, unperturbed.

Scarlett laughed at him. That wonderful, honest laugh. She laughed like she enjoyed it, not like a simpering idiot or like a hyena.

Derek decided at that moment that things were getting dangerous, and cut to the chase. "Tonight is your night- if you're smart enough to accept. How would you like to go with the MVP of the hockey team on a date?"

"With the MVP," she said, "and not Derek Venturi? How shallow! But, as I'm dressed the part, why not?"

Derek almost didn't here the 'dressed the part' thing, as she'd almost succeeded in muttering it completely under her breath, but he fortunately (for him) had keen ears. This phrase puzzled him, but since he had just scored a date, he'd think about it later. "Great," he said in a low voice, leaning forward, and then got up and left.

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**Scarlett's POV**

_I won, _she thought triumphantly.

Behind that foremost thought was another, less expected feeling. It was something along the lines of- relief. Giddiness, almost.

_Get a grip, _she told herself when she recognized the thought, and opened the door, wearing her gymnastic outfit.

This was the second class she had with Derek. Well, not really _with_ him- the weight training class met in the same huge gym as the gymnastics team practiced in. (**A/N: I really have no idea about gymnastics, so to those of you who do… please forgive me) **

These were the tryouts for juniors. Because of her track record with gymnastics, she was fairly certain she'd be asked anyways, but she was also fairly certain that a little showing off in her own thing would be beneficial in some way or another.

It was. Mitchell Howard was the captain of the team, and was openly ogling her.

Derek came into the gym with the rest of the class, and almost instantly spotted her. However, he did not wave or even give a sign of recognition other than a small nod.

Scarlett felt stung. Even if he thought her a slut, he'd just asked her out on a _date, _for pity's sake! He could at least… well, do something!

Perhaps it was that that sent her straight into a devilry making mood. Instead of doing her well rehearsed routine on the gym mat, when she was called she walked over to the double high bars. **(You know, those things on the Olympics where they circle around one bar, flip to the next which is shorter after all sorts of fancy tricks and somehow flip back onto the higher one, and jump down?) **

"I need someone to catch me," she said, grinning, and pointedly looking at Mitchell: the Pencil Guy. _How fortunate is _that,she thought. _Things are working to our advantage. _

Mitchell, also grinning, readily acquiesced, and placed himself in the appropriate spot.

The familiar rough feel of the bars was once again on her fingers. Instantly she forgot everything but the awesomeness of being completely in control of her body's movements. On the second cycle around the bars, she seemingly froze in place, and then pivoted, switching both of her hands' position on the ivory cylinder. After two more easy cycles around the bar she launched herself onto the second. A few hard tricks effortlessly pulled off, and she was suddenly back on the first bar. Then, after back onto the second, she jumped off.

Mitchell was waiting. He caught her much closer than she'd required, since her landing was almost perfect enough to not have someone to catch her.

He wasn't letting go, and was holding her far too tightly for her taste. She looked up at him, white with fury (conveniently forgetting that this was what she'd planned), but he didn't catch her rage.

"Wanna go to a movie tonight?" he asked in a whisper.

She glared at him, but once again he was too thick to catch it. "I already have a date," she said, in a fake honey-sweet voice, and stomped away.

If Scarlett hadn't been mad, she would have been very happy with Derek's reaction. He was staring at her as though seeing her for the very first time, almost like you would look at a tornado coming towards you. And, the obscure thought running through his mind translated to something like: _That #$ needs to get his paws off Scarlett._

Last period was Math. Both Casey _and _Derek were in it with her, and Scarlett was looking forward to several amusing fiascos taking place in it.

She'd cooled down considerably from her plan-gone-wrong with Mitchell, and was completely in control of herself. Scarlett waltzed into the room, and bestowed a wanton smile upon Derek.

_Bimbo, bimbo,_ she started chanting in her head. _You are a bimbo. Act like one. _

It didn't work. A bimbo would have probably gone over and sat in his lap for the few minutes before class started, making out with him. Scarlett would not, and could not, do that.

She sighed mentally at herself. _This is going to be harder than I first thought. _

When she sat down at a desk, one away from Derek (safely out of reach in case he wanted to treat her like a bimbo).

When he wasn't looking at her, she stole a smirk at Casey.

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**Casey's POV**

There were three thoughts that ran through Casey's head when she saw Scarlett's smirk. The first, only slightly ahead, was: _That smirk is just like Derek's. _The second was: _Oh my gosh- she did it! _The third, slightly crestfallen: _That means I owe her twenty bucks. _

Casey laughed inside when she saw Derek's smug little face. _He is so dead, and he doesn't even know it. Poor Derek: he thinks the world is rosy right now. He humiliated me again, and he scored another date with a hot girl. Little does he know…_

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**Derek's POV**

Derek didn't pay attention to a word that was said all through the math discussion. All he could think about was his new idea: walk her to her car, and get a ride home. Somehow, the kid sitting next to him knew that Scarlett had her own car. He didn't care how the nerd knew. It helped him. Was that the same nerd that he'd glared at this morning? The fuzzy notion hovered around in the back of his mind for a second, and then was waved away. It didn't matter.

Derek tapped his fingers impatiently against the desk. How long _was_ last hour? It was dragging on for seemingly _days._

Finally, the loudspeaker beeped and the assistant principal began his monologue as everyone rushed out of the room. Not a single person was paying the least heed to his boring chant, least of all, Derek.

Using the equivalent of a swagger, he made his way over to Scarlett and threw a possessive arm around her shoulders.

Those mocking green eyes looked up at him, daring him to have the guts kiss her.

"Tempting as it is," he said, watching soft red stain her bronze cheeks with satisfaction, "I really only wanted to get a ride home with you. I hear you have a hot car." Actually, he'd heard nothing of the sort, and that was a high compliment in dude world- meant to butter her up.

She grinned at him. "Sure," she said, a little too eagerly.

Derek narrowed his eyes at her, turning his head a little to the side to better scrutinize her. A picture of complete ingenuousness was cast up at him, blinking her eyes innocently.

_Nah, _he scoffed at himself. _You're imagining things. _

Together they walked out of the school and a few blocks away, to her car.

Derek's jaw dropped to his knees when he saw the car.

"You- you have a _Ferrari_?" he sputtered.

He distinctly heard a chuckle. "A Ferrari Enzo, to be precise. Get in."

Reverently he opened the door, which opened up sideways. "That is so cool," he said, in a subdued voice, almost in an awed whisper.

Scarlett looked pointedly at him, laughing. "You do need to close the door," she said.

"Oh. Right," he said distractedly, and complied.

Several silent moments passed as Derek cast worshipful eyes around the leather and stainless steel interior.

"I also need to know where to go," she said, in a tight voice that was trying to hold in laughter.

Derek blinked. "Where I live?" he said, blankly.

"Yeah," she said with an amused smile. "You know, where you eat and sleep."

Derek tried to shake the confusion out of his head. Succeeding minimally, he managed to tear his mind away from the Ferrari and try to understand what was going on.

_Oh, no, _he moaned, comprehension dawning. _I'll be expected to invite her _in_. With Casey, and Lizzie, and Edwin, and Marti- and worse, my dad. I'm dead. _

There was nothing for it. He gave her the directions and sat mutely in his seat, his enjoyment and reverence for being in a Ferrari Enzo seriously impaired with the thought of introducing Scarlett to his family.

* * *

I think some of the writer's block wore off as I forced myself to work on this chapter. One can only hope. 

Next chapter she meets the Venturi-MacDonald household, and 'meets' Casey. This chapter I'd already had half-done, so it will be a bit before I have another one up. I'll hurry!

I love reviews. Tell me what you didn't like about this chapter- suggestions, whatever. I love suggestions!

Remember that Scarlett's grandparents funded the remodeling of her little suite? Well, that's where she got her Ferrari. (Wish my grandparents would do that kind of thing!)


	4. Meeting the Family

Thanks, Danielle!

Sorry, girl in disguise, for not answering in chapter 3. As of now, Scarlett/Derek is my plan. But I'm having the whole thing be rather rocky going, so to be realistic, they might not get together.

I love reviews. Please… I suppose I can only beg, and hand out virtual cupcakes for everyone that does. We'll see how well it works for this chapter.

Interesting fact: I looked up bimbo (to find synonyms), and it supposedly came from the Italian word for babe.

* * *

Meeting the Family

Derek was desperately trying to think of some way to stall or some excuse to prevent her from coming in.

Various unacceptable and improbable schemes zipped through his head, each more unworkable than the last. Exasperated, he took a deep breath. _Okay. You are the Lord of Lies, the Duke of Deception. Lie like you've never lied before._

"Scarlett," he began, with his most charming smile.

"Yes?" she asked, mimicking his tone admirably.

He rolled his eyes. "My little sister, my stepsisters, and my brother all have… Congenbronchalitus," he said, piecing various scientific illness names together. "It's a very rare infectious disease that's never been seen before, and the doctors don't want anyone spreading or catching the illness. So you can't come inside. Sorry."

She laughed at him. Derek did not like that laugh.

"If it was an infectious disease, and the doctors didn't want it spreading, _you_ wouldn't be going to school. You'd be under house arrest."

_Crap,_ was all he could think.

Scarlett glanced at him as she drove, grinning. "You could have wormed your way out of that one: The new disease affected you within a week, and it had been longer than that. You obviously didn't have it, and you can't spread it unless you have it. And you just should have said very rare, not new: If it was new, you and all the people in your house would be in the hospital being treated like lab rats to find out more about the sickness."

When he didn't say anything (for he was speechless), she laughed again. "If I wasn't so smart, you would have gotten away with it. Stick to lying with stuff you know about."

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Scarlett could have slapped herself. She was a whore, not smart. Derek's 'diversions' were not smart. They had chest, long legs, were slim, and were stupid. Derek's bimbo would giggle at the least word from his mouth, and then fiddle with a lock of his hair, waiting for him to initiate a kiss. She would _not_ instruct him on how not to lie.

_This, _she thought, despairing, _is turning out to be more and more impossible. _

The rest of the drive was passed in uncomfortable silence. There really was nothing _to_ say; at least, nothing that Scarlett could come up with. Millions of possibilities flickered through her head, but each sounded just as stupid even to her mental ears as the last.

Sighing, and resigned, she settled back into the seat for the remainder of the drive. It wasn't too long before they up next to a medium sized, charming house. She parked along the street and turned the car off.

Scarlett got out, looking intently at the house. There was something indescribable about it that she liked very well. It looked… lived in. Not messy, not manicured. It looked like home. The deep reddish brown color of the house melded perfectly with the easygoing flavor of it. Unconsciously, Scarlett smiled. She liked his house a lot.

_Not, _she thought, _that he has anything to do with the way it looks. _

"You really don't have to come inside," said Derek in a tight voice.

She smiled at him compassionately. "Stop making excuses. You asked me out, and I drove you home. It's called commonsense that you would invite me in."

Derek let out a disgusted (and comic) groan/sigh. "All _right_," he said, in a harassed tone.

Scarlett suppressed a chuckle. _This is only the beginning, my friend. _

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Derek opened the door for her, wincing as different horrid possibilities of the coming scene flickered through his head. _Calm down,_ he ordered himself, slightly hysterically. _This isn't the end of the world. _

Oddly, though, it felt like it was the second Marti came hurtling down the stairs with makeup all over her face, yelling, "I'm pretty! I like Casey's makeup!"

The little girl halted at mid giggle at the sight of Scarlett. "You're pretty," she said, with a tinge of awe in her tone.

Derek grimaced and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the explosion.

But there wasn't one. Daring to open an eye, he saw a soft expression steal over Scarlett's face as she knelt down beside the seven year old.

"Really?" she asked in a purposefully flattered tone. "I spent a long time getting dressed this morning. I think I'm almost as cute as you."

Instantly Marti announced that she liked Derek's new girlfriend very much. Scarlett threw her head back and laughed that laugh. Derek expelled a breath that he had not been aware of holding.

Scarlett smiled at Marti. "You know, you would be downright gorgeous if you had the makeup on right,"

_Oh, no,_ he groaned. Criticize Marti, and she threw a fit. A spoiled child's fit that did not sit well with the person who it was directed at. Derek watched with trepidation as Marti's mouth formed into a petulant frown.

"Do you want me to help you?" asked Scarlett.

The frown vanished. Marti seized Scarlett's hand and dragged her up the stairs. "I _like_ you!" was the last thing Derek heard.

Edwin had been sitting on the couch when they came in. His eyebrows were raised in frank admiration, and his jaw was slightly dropped. "_Dude_-" he expostulated.

"Don't even think about it," warned Derek. "I'll stuff you into the washer machine and turn it on. You're too young."

"Sheesh," said Edwin, pretending offence. "I was just going to say you scored."

"Right," said Derek, lifting an eyebrow.

Then he looked up the stairs. _Now_ what did he do?

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Casey, smiling secretly, opened the door to the house and nearly collided with Derek, who was standing right in the way. "Derek," she said, exasperated. Then she caught sight of something. A smear of her newly purchased, _very_ expensive lipstick on the railing. "NO!" she wailed, despairing.

Just then, Scarlett appeared at the top of the stairs. Marti was in front of her, bearing no signs of the lipstick on her face. At a closer glance Casey noticed that there was light brown eyeliner on her pretty little grey eyes, and her cute curly lashes were darkened with some mascara. On her lips was the tiniest little amount of sparkly lip gloss (also Casey's) and there was a little blush on her cheeks.

Marti did not look at all like a seven year old. She looked like a thirteen year old girl going on her first date. Until, that is, she jumped up and down and shouted at Casey: "Isn't your makeup pretty on me Casey?" and her red lipstick covered hands were revealed.

Forcing down a natural impulse to scream, Casey managed to say quite calmly, "But it's _my _makeup, Marti. Did you ask before you used it?"

"You don't like it?" she asked, in a heartbroken little voice, her hands going to her mouth to facilitate the chewing of one of her fingernails.

"No, no," said Casey hastily. "I like it a lot, Marti, but it's just that the stuff you… used is... expensive, and I haven't even used it yet."

Here Scarlett intervened. "She's right, Marti," she said with a sigh. "I should have asked before I helped you put it on. It's not very nice to do that."

Marti looked like she was about to cry. Derek picked her up instinctively. "Well, you do look pretty nice," he said, and then began tickling her. "Too nice for my little sister. I'll have to use my hockey stick to beat up all the boys." Marti giggled, completely in charity with Smerek.

Scarlett, with the ease of a polished actress, came down the stairs and put out her hand. "Hi," she said. "You must be Casey. My name is Scarlett, and I'm-"

Casey, taking her cue, interrupted. "Another one of Derek's whores. You'll probably fall into the girl-a-week category."

The smile on Scarlett's face was convincingly frozen in place, and Casey (if she had not known better) would almost have thought that Scarlett was genuinely mad at her.

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Derek cut in. "Don't listen to Casey," he said hastily. "She's my stepsister. She's just jealous."

As quickly and unobtrusively as possible he set Marti down and shepherded Scarlett into a safer place than the war zone near the entryway: the kitchen.

Once there he let out a loud sigh of relief. "Sorry," he said. "My stepsister is kinda crazy sometimes. That's why I didn't want you to come in- she can be a real witch sometimes."

Scarlett's smile was brittle. "A one a week, Derek? Is that what I am?"

The answer yes was obviously not an option. Derek ran a hand through his hair. Yes, that's what he'd intended. But that sounded evil, even for him, as he thought about it more. Well, what was he supposed to say? That had never been an issue before…

"Forget it," she said, in an entirely different tone. Derek looked down at her, and was aware that she was standing invitingly close.

Never one to pass up an invitation, he leaned in to kiss her.

"DEREK!" yelled George furiously, coming in the door near the kitchen.

Instantly he backed away, embarrassed, and Scarlett looked down, discomfited. George didn't notice their reactions, for he was far too enraged.

"I don't know why you thought that the keys on _my_ desk are up for grabs. That was bad enough. But then, you outdid yourself. There was a nail in the tire, Derek. I was late to the hearing. Where did you go that you'd get that kind of nail in the tire?" Not really expecting an answer, and pausing for a breath, he saw Scarlett. "Is this the girl you took on a date last night, and wrecked my car with?"

"No, dad," said Derek, grimacing.

An uncomfortable silence fell.

George seemed to realize he'd just let Scarlett know Derek was cheating, and was acutely embarassed. It showed as he stuttered an apology. "I'm sorry, Miss…" ere he paused, waiting for her to fill in the blank.

"Just call me Scarlett, Mr. Venturi," said Scarlett, in a stiff tone. "I'm sorry. This must be a bad time. Sorry for intruding-"

"No, no. I'm sorry. That was totally awkward, I know," he said. "Derek just facilitates this kind of thing sometimes." Then, after a small pause, he said, "In fact, I don't want you to go."

He began to look like he was getting an idea.

A feeling of deepest despair filled Derek's stomach.

"In fact, I want you to stay for dinner."

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"You know what Derek's nickname was, when he had long hair?" George asked Scarlett, hugely enjoying himself.

"What?" she asked, smiling in anticipation, pausing in the act of lifting a fork to her mouth. She liked George- and the rest of the clan.

"_Dereka_," sniggered Edwin.

The entire table snorted with laughter. A muffled yelp of pain suddenly came from Edwin's side of the table, and Derek was glaring at him.

"One time, when we all went camping when Derek was like nine…" started Derek's dad again, on another story.

Derek sank his head in his hands. "Can we _please _stop?" he asked in a moan. "I'm sorry for taking the car out. I'll pay for it. I'll be grounded for a month. Just…_stop_."

"Oh, you'll pay for it," said George. "And you'll be grounded for a month. But this is icing on the cake."

"Plus," broke in Scarlett, smiling maliciously, "I'm enjoying this."

Casey bit back a choke of laughter.

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The night was turning into a real world hell for Derek. It seemed to never end. Who knew there were so many embarrassing stories that could be told?

Finally, after what seemed like hours of torture, Derek admitted defeat like a man and asked to be allowed to escape.

"I think he's suffered enough, George," said Nora with a smile.

"Yeah, if the world was fair," he replied. "But, as it's not, I say you stay. There's a picture book somewhere of Derek in kindergarten wearing a dress… and one of him picking his nose…"

When Derek could not restrain a genuine groan of agony, George relented. "All right. You can go to your room for tonight- but this isn't it. We'll talk about this more tomorrow."

Derek made good his escape and fled up the stairs.

George turned to Scarlett. "Listen, thanks for putting up with this. I know I didn't really give you much of a choice, and it must have been boring-"

"It was the most amusing night I've spent in weeks," she answered truthfully. "And thanks for dinner." Then, with Casey, she started to rise and help take care of the dishes.

Nora, looking with a surprised and pleased look at George, jerked her head meaningfully at Scarlett. 'Explain Derek' she mouthed.

He sighed heavily and dropped his shoulders in exasperation, but complied. "Hey Casey," he said, rising, "Why don't you go help get Marti ready for bed and I'll help Scarlett."

"Okay George," she said, and smiled (as though surprised) at Scarlett.

George entered the kitchen with his hands in his pockets. He was obviously trying to figure out how to say something. She turned to face him, waiting patiently.

Finally he seemed to find the words. "Derek is… well, he's… unpredictable."

"You're trying to say that he's a player," she said, releiving him.

George nodded. "He's irresponsible. And I'm sorry if it wasn't my place to let you know that you're one of many-"

"I knew that before," she interrupted again, and not disrespectfully. "I mean to change that. You're a cool guy, George," she added suddenly, looking at him closely.

"Well yes," he acknowledged. "I am. Thanks!"

She smiled. Without the 'thanks', it could have been Derek talking.

Casey entered the kitchen quietly. "Uh, George?" she asked, with a convincing tremor of remorse running through her voice.

"Yeah, Casey?"

"Can I- be alone with Scarlett? I want to apologize. I said some nasty things earlier."

He looked around, a little flustered/surprised by the request. "Ah- sure," he said.

"We'll go upstairs," said Casey, a little too readily.

Scarlett gave her a warning look and smiled again at George. "Thanks again, Mr. Venturi."

He shrugged with a smile, obviously a little embarrassed about a non-family member witnessing a family matter, but being good-natured about it.

She flashed another smile at him and ran up the stairs with Casey, up to her room.

Once there, they both burst into laughter.

"Did you _see_ the look on Derek's face when George told about the squid and him?" squealed Casey, tears of mirth running down her cheeks.

"I- I- kn-ow!" managed Scarlett.

Only after five minutes had they calmed sufficiently to stop snickering and wipe the moisture off their faces.

Scarlett shook her head in admiration. "I had no idea you'd be able to pull it off that well. I almost believed your act."

"Please! I was an amateur compared to you. After I called you a one-a-week girl, you looked genuinely murderous."

"Thanks. Who was that girl he was out with last night?" she asked, a little too lightly.

Casey didn't notice it, and snorted. "Some blonde jade that Derek took to a party out in a barn last night. Don't ask me her name. I doubt that even Derek could tell you."

Unreasonably, Scarlett was feeling very out of temper with Derek. She dismissed it as lingering resentment for their little locker incident.

"Tomorrow I'll go on a date with him, if he isn't grounded," decided Scarlett. "Do you think that we should wait to tear him apart, or start right away? We might make him suspicious."

"We'll wait," said Casey positively. "I can be patient. And the less suspicious he is of you, the longer we'll be able to mess with him."

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Neither of them was aware of the small head pressed against the slightly cracked open door. Lizzie, clipboard in hand and a devious smile of her own forming, was writing down every word.

* * *

Mmmm. Wonder if Lizzie will tell Edwin? Well, obviously if she tells _him_, it will get around to Derek. Can't have that happening too soon.

Well, I hope I didn't botch it folks. Tell me if you liked it, hated it, have suggestions, whatever. When I see in my inbox FF Review Alert I want to write as many things as possible on as many different subjects as possible. Or give you a virtual hug. Pathetic, I know. But humor my patheticness!


	5. Let's Go Camping

The cupcakes didn't work. -sobs-

Ah, well. I scrapped my original plan for this point, because it was getting way too involved and there were too many conflicting elements. So here goes the new one.

This is a short 'transition' chapter. The next one will be longer, if you care.

* * *

Let's go Camping

School had just ended. Scarlett hadn't looked at or said a word to Derek all day. She was putting her things into her locker when she heard faltering footsteps come up behind her. "Yes?" she asked, her tone anything but friendly.

The person sighed. "Look," he said. It was Derek. "I know that last night was horrible, and I made a complete fool of myself."

There was a pause. Scarlett swivelled around to face him, leaning against the lockers, her olive face impassive. "I'm listening," she said, in a monotone. _You have the power. So make him beg, _whispered an evil voice inside her head.

"That wasn't the best way for you to find out that I had another girlfriend only yesterday, was it?"

"Was she even a girlfriend? Or, more importantly, was I?" she challenged, crossing her arms.

"Look, I'm trying to be a good guy here!" he exploded. "I'm apologizing- after _I _was the one embarrassed!"

Her jaw dropped. "_What?_ _I _find out you're either planning on cheating _on _me or that you were cheating _with_ me, _I _have to listen to your dad go on and on about stupid stuff all night, _I _have to tolerate being hit on by your little brother-"

"Oh, I'm gonna kill him," growled Derek.

Ignoring this, she pushed on. "And you have the nerve to come up and play the victim? I don't _think_ so, Derek Venturi!"

Slamming her locker shut, she whirled and stomped off.

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Derek was left standing there, running his hands through his hair. There wasn't much he could do here, now that he'd messed it up. Well, if he didn't do _something_, she'd hate him for a good long while. So, he was left with a key question: Was she worth some effort?

Derek sighed. Running after her was not an option; not with this many people around. Then, suddenly, a little something he'd noticed last night clicked in his head. He and went to go find Casey.

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Casey was also at her locker when Derek came up behind her. She recognized him instantly, for that self-satisfied step was most often present in him when he was about to torture her (which suffieciently often enough for her to recognize it).

"What, Derek?" she asked, sighing. Might as well get over with it.

"Last night I heard you and Scarlett talking. There were a little too many laughs in there for you two to be enemies."

Casey smiled, her face still facing the lockers. The way he'd asked facilitated the use of her premade excuse, which she was extremely grateful for. This wouldn't be so bad after all. "I felt bad for what I said. I mean, its not her fault you're using her. We started talking," she said, shrugging, "and I found out that she's okay."

He raised a doubtful eyebrow. "That's it?"

"Well, we talked about how much we hated you throughout the classes we had together, and ate lunch together. And we're both going to the mall with Kendra today." She turned to face him. "Why?"

He was smirking. Casey was concious suddenly of a sinking feeling washing over her. "What?" she asked, her voice full of dread.

"If you don't persuade Scarlett to come on the camping trip, you'll find another half of a juicy beetle in your food every day. And also, you probably shouldn't trust anything in the bathroom at night."

"That bug was _you_? Ugh, I hate you!!" she screamed.

He was laughing. "Now, that isn't a very nice thing to say to your brother," he said. "Just remember, sis, that you'd better get her to the camping trip."

Casey stood fuming at her locker for some time, dreaming up different methods of killing Derek. She was there for quite some time, until Scarlett came along and grinned at her. "Lemme guess- Derek?" she asked.

Casey uttered a disgusted sound, and nodded.

Scarlett grinned wryly. "Me too."

"He told me that if I didn't get you to come on our spring break camping trip, he would put bugs in my food and mess with my stuff! I hate him!"

"Hey, calm down," said Scarlett, laughing. She realized instantly what Derek was doing, and was gratified. Well, she could hardly expect Mr. Narcissus to run after her. This was close enough to an apology for her to not completely hate him. But she'd still be mad at him to his face, since he hadn't told her that he _did_ care about her to her face. "I'll go."

How stupid and disastrous those few, ill-judged words turned out to be.

* * *

Camping with the Venturi-MacDonald clan (and Sam) will be an interesting experience for Scarlett as Derek plots. 


	6. A Usurper

If my narration is a little weird or the way I say things is odd, it's because I've just been reading a Georgette Heyer book. Her books always inspire me, and afterwards I both talk and write like she narrates for a good month. You should read her. She's funny.

Ok, enough stuff you don't care about! I am taking the liberty of assuming that since you're reading this story, you care about it to some extent. Woo, I'm rambling again. Sorry.

* * *

A Usurper

Scarlett gazed despondently at her grime encrusted hands. Then came the smooth voice she was beginning to honestly despise.

"Crying over a broken nail, Princess?" he asked softly.

She didn't deign to answer him, and sniffed. Her hauteur did not seem to dismay him in the least.

"You know, it's stupid to scoff at probably the only one who would prevent you from falling into the mud," he chided.

Scarlett consigned the betraying twitch of her lips to a very warm place as he smirked. Then she sighed. "Can we sign a truce, at least for the rest of the next two weeks?" she asked, her voice suddenly weary and defeated.

Derek was not fooled. He saw the revealing spark in her eyes. He'd discovered over the past three days that the glint shining from the depths of her hooded green eyes meant war. And war was always fun.

"I'll be on my toes tonight then," he said, at length.

Scarlett made an exasperated sound. "Must you always see through me? It's becoming extremely annoying!"

"Isn't that what I live for?" he asked insolently, looking down at her.

She shrugged off a slight flutter as the breeze and smirked back at him. "You are very wise to keep on your toes," she said, in a low, husky voice. With this parting shot she stomped off, and continued up the mountain.

They were two hours ahead of the rest of the party already- Lizzie had twisted her ankle, and everyone had stopped for a break to let her rest. George had waved the children on, but Casey was too concerned about Lizzie to leave her, Sam (Derek had insisted on bringing him) was too infatuated with Casey to go, and Edwin was too smitten with Lizzie (he still violently denied it) to go either. This left Marti, Scarlett, and Derek. Marti had proclaimed her intention to stay under a rock with Nutkin (a cute, friendly little chipmunk that was quite frankly only permitting the girl near him because she had introduced him to Snickers bars), so that took care of her as well.

There had been a diverting little staring contest between Derek and Scarlett, which was avidly watched by every member of the seven onlookers. It had resulted with Scarlett announcing in a petulant tone that she was going to make it to the top by sunset, and be back by eight, since _she_ could handle the task.

Of course, Derek instantly took up the challenge, saying that he'd bet he'd be with her every step of the way- and probably ahead of her. Glaring at each other, they'd stormed off at a near jog.

Now it was two and a half hours later, and both were extremely tired and hungry. However, being very much in the middle of an honest (and stupid) battle, neither could admit fatigue.

Derek gritted his teeth and forced his tired legs into a jog. After what seemed an interminable length of time, but was really only two short minutes, she came into view.

"Wait up, Scarlett!" he called.

"Why? Are you getting tired, Mr. Buff?" she asked insolently. Her voice was out of breath, and she knew it. But she also knew that he was tired.

Derek started laughing. He laughed so hard, that the stitch already present in his side blossomed into a massive problem that threatened to prevent him from breathing.

Reluctantly, Scarlett broke into a grin too and went back to stand next to him. "Don't kill yourself," she grumbled. "They'd blame me. Which, I'll admit, isn't a completely outlandish scenario."

Derek could only grin at her stupidly, gasping for breath and still trying to force away a laugh. Finally, he gave up and plopped onto the ground, chest heaving.

She sat down too, grateful for the excuse.

"You realize how stupid we're being?" he asked, after recovering.

"That's why you were laughing? Well, I don't know about _me,_ but I can-"

"Oh, shut up," said Derek, grinning at her.

She stuck her tongue out at him.

He sighed. "At least give it a rest until I get my breath back?" he pleaded.

Scarlett granted it with a sneer, though she was exceptionally grateful for the opportunity to catch her breath as well.

Leaning back against the soft, warm earth, Scarlett's eyes slowly began to drift shut…

And then, she heard some sort of scrambling. "Ya snooze, ya lose!" laughed Derek's fading voice.

She rose hurriedly from her position. Very quickly she found that her shoelaces were tied, and her backpack had its contents emptied out around her. "Oh that-" she growled, the expletives she employed far too inappropriate to relate.

Relatively quickly (for she was very eager to close her hands around Derek's neck) she was able to untie her shoes, stuff her things back in her backpack, and run after him.

"I. Hate. You!" she yelled, as she saw his back come into view.

The way was very steep at this part of the trail, and the dry, golden dust that was the path did not help matters any. There were medium sized pieces of loose rock hanging about everywhere, and on either side of the narrow path there was scrubby, grayish green vegetation. The sun was glaring down rather spitefully at Scarlett (it seemed to her) for she was rapidly overheating between her fury, her exertion, and the sun.

He kindly allowed her to catch up to him, grinning evilly as she came up.

After she caught her breath, she glared at him. "Don't you think that's a little immature?"

"There's a bet on the line," he explained. "Nothing is too low for me to ensure that I win my bet."

"Are you that greedy?" she asked, amazed.

He pursed his lips and looked around thoughtfully, trying to find a way to explain it. "It's not the money. It's the… honor. I can count on one hand how many bets I've lost." He smirked, thinking of his wins with the MacDonalds.

"Well, you're about to lose this one," she told him, thoroughly put out. "If nothing's too low for you, two can play at that game." With that, she gave him a calculated shove, sending him into the bushes.

Once Derek extricated himself from the scrub, he used some invectives similar to what Scarlett had utilized that were equally improper. Amongst the swearwords, suitable phrases included: "Gonna get that-", "Stupid-" "-of a girl!" and which essentially would have given any chance onlooker the idea that he was about to commit murder.

He stomped up the steep path, picking his way through the rubble, glowering darkly at anything that would be affected by it.

However, his scowl disappeared as he came up to the highest point of the trail.

A sprawling vista greeted his eyes, full of lush green trees, a crystalline blue lake, and rolling hills. An odd, wispy white cloud floated lazily about the peak they were on, a few feet below them.

Derek chanced a look at Scarlett. She was smiling, an almost entranced expression on her bronze face. "It's beautiful," she said, in a hushed voice.

Even though scenery wasn't really his thing (or at least wasn't supposed to be), Derek had to admit it was a startlingly gorgeous view.

Then, the sun began to dip in the sky. Its once oppressive rays lengthened and softened into orange-red splendor that caressed their faces gently, casting a soft glow over all that it touched. What had been breathtaking before was now almost otherworldly.

All too rapidly the sun sank beneath the horizon, and purple twilight descended upon the mountain. The crickets began to chirp, and the brightest stars began to show their presence in the velvet sky, twinkling bravely through the still-thick atmosphere.

An unconscious smile was now on Derek's lips as well. It was with reluctance that he finally turned to Scarlett. "We have to go," he said softly.

Scarlett shook her head, as though trying to shed a memory that had been refreshed by the scene. Her green eyes cleared as he looked at them, and abruptly, she nodded. "I know."

They began to walk in strangely peaceful silence down the mountain.

The moon reared its silver head over the pair, casting the trail into clear relief. Scarlett suddenly halted and turned to Derek. "Tomorrow, we're playing a sport, right?" she asked.

He nodded cautiously.

"Which one?"

"Football," he said evenly.

"Liar!" she scoffed, after taking a single look at him. "You don't know!"

"Well, the parents always have us vote on it," he explained, "and if there's a problem we put the votes as stakes, and play for them."

She considered this for a while. "We'll play poker for them," she decided.

He glared at her. "I don't want to play poker for them," he said. "We'll race to camp to see who gets the votes."

Scarlett glared right back, the harmony between them at an end. She crossed her arms. "You have the advantage because you know the trail better than I do," she said crossly.

"Not because I'm a guy?" he suggested provocatively.

She did not grace this sally with a reply. "So we'll play poker."

"No, we will not!"

Scarlett took stock of him. He was becoming more and more heated by the second, and from the anger in his electric brown eyes she knew being so defied was not a familiar experience. But she knew exactly how to play her cards. "We," she whispered, coming very close to him, "will play poker."

He gulped as she put a slender hand against his chest and grinned up at him. "No we won't," he said, his voice sadly lacking in conviction as she brought her mouth a fraction of an inch away from his.

"Okay," she shrugged, and backed away.

"Fine," he groaned. "You win!"

She smirked. Derek hooked an arm around her waist and drew her closer, finding he had only to lower his head a few inches to capture her lips with his.

He had noticed before that Scarlett had particularly kissable lips, but he had not known until then just how delicious she was. He pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. She tasted like… like a very sweet lemon. Tart, yet sweet and succulent at the same time.

She broke away suddenly, breathing a little heavily, noted Derek (with satisfaction). She shook her head, again as if to clear it.

"We're going back," she said, a little breathlessly, but her voice held a clear and determined threat in it. _Try it again, _she was daring, _and you die._

Scarlett knew he was smirking, even though she was turned away from him. She was surprised and gratified that he did not attempt to touch her, and instead merely acquiesced and started walking.

The bet was forgotten after this little événement, both of their minds being wholly preoccupied in thinking about the kiss.

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They arrived at the camp ten minutes to eight, and found that everyone had already eaten.

"We figured you could fend for yourselves if you wanted to hike off by yourselves," said George.

Nora grinned and pointed to one of the five coolers. "Materials are in there," she told them.

Scarlett went, sighing, over to the cooler, and brought out two slices of bread, a jar of crunchy peanut butter, and a jar of dill pickles. Derek sat down on the picnic table, watching her boredly as she constructed the sandwich.

When she finally finished, she turned to put the dill pickles away. Derek grinned and reached for the plate. Abruptly he was conscious of a sharp sting on his hand.

Scarlett had smacked him with a wooden spoon, her hand that was not brandishing the weapon planted on her hip. "I expected that," she said, with loathing.

"Can't you feed a starving man?" he pleaded.

"I'd feed a starving _man_, yes," she smirked.

Casey, along with Edwin, Lizzie, and Sam, snickered.

Derek grudgingly acknowledged defeat, and began to make his sandwich. Every so often he would shoot Scarlett a comically doleful look, trying to get her to laugh.

Scarlett grinned in reply, taking a large, crunchy bite out of her sandwich. "Mmmm, peanut butter and pickles," she said, purposefully aggravatingly.

Derek was not paying attention as much to what she said as to her tongue as it slipped out of the corner of her mouth to catch a crumb.

Marti broke the moment. "Is a peanutbutterpickle sandwich good, Letty?" she asked, slipping into Scarlett's lap. Letty was her pet name for Scarlett.

Scarlett smiled at the little girl. "Why don't you tell me?" she asked, and tickled her softly. Marti giggled, and took a huge (at least for her) bite out of the sandwich.

After much careful deliberation, Marti announced that a PBP was now the only food she would eat.

Scarlett smiled and gently protested. "If you just have sandwiches all the time, you won't be able to be as pretty as you would be otherwise," she said.

This apparently had never been presented to Marti. "Why?" she asked, a little sullenly.

"Well, you'll still be pretty," she explained, "but your body needs to have all the good little things from healthy food to build pretty cells. And the more pretty cells you have, the prettier you are."

This apparently seemed to make sense to Marti, but she asked, a little sadly, "I can't have a PBP or ice cream anymore?"

Scarlett chuckled. "Of course you can," she told her, "because that makes the pretty cell builders in your body happy too. But if they get too much bad food, they'll feel much too sick to make any more pretty cells. Do you get it?"

Marti nodded solemnly. "Can I have another bite, Letty?" she asked, with a rare show of politeness.

Scarlett smiled again and nodded.

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Nora sat with George's arm disposed over her shoulders. She smiled up at him after Scarlett's deft handling of the temperamental little Marti. "Do you like Scarlett?" she queried him.

"I'd be half in love with her if she would be able to do that to Marti all the time," he said.

Nora poked him in mock reproof.

"Just kidding," he said, and made amends by kissing her full on the mouth.

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"Eeew!!" groaned Edwin, seeing his dad and step mom making out.

"What?" asked Lizzie innocently, and then gagged as she saw it herself.

"Aw, dad!" groaned Derek. "Can you take it somewhere else?"

Nora broke the kiss to laugh at him, and grinned up at George. "The kids can fend for themselves," she said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Ah, Derek, Casey," he said unevenly, still looking at Nora. "You're going to keep an eye on the kids."

Simultaneously all the onlookers squealed, "Eeew!"

"Sure, Dad," sighed Derek, shuddering a little.

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When they were safely out of sight, Derek pushed his sandwich away and turned to Scarlett. "Now we play for the votes," he told her. "Sam!" he snapped, military man style.

"Yessir!" said Sam, unconsciously straightening.

"You're on my team."

"Yessir," said Sam, respectfully.

Scarlett rolled her eyes. "Girls vs. Boys," she told him. "Marti's on our team. Right, Marti?"

"Right!" affirmed Marti.

"Traitor," accused Derek.

"Smerek, I'm a _girl_. I can't be on your team," she explained kindly. Then, abandoning compassion, she yelled, "We're gonna CRUSH them!"

The girls and boys separated to opposite ends of the picnic table. Scarlett explained things to her team in a low whisper. "We're playing poker for the right to decide what game we're playing tomorrow. Leave most everything to me. I've played poker since I was three."

Derek was whispering also. "Listen, guys," he told Edwin and Sam. "Leave everything to me. I'm the Proprietor of Poker. And we only cheat after the first half, and only if we're losing."

"Cheat?" said Sam, uncomfortably, and a little too loud.

Scarlett's eyes narrowed in suspicion as she caught the word.

Derek glanced over at her, clamping a hand against Sam's mouth. "Never," he hissed, "say anything out loud again."

Sam nodded in his submissive (and slightly vapid) way.

Scarlett, casting a warning glance at Derek, rose and went to get her poker set out of the girl's tent. A few seconds later she emerged from it, carrying a silver briefcase. She tossed it down on top of the table, having it land with a professional crack.

**(A/N: I only know how to play Texas hold'em poker, so… this is a fictional adaptation of that) **

"Black is five hundred, white is one hundred," she said curtly, opening the briefcase. "You have to get the opposing team completely out of chips to win. We play one on one, each person on the team taking their turn playing. The team may help the person play, but only _suggesttions_. The ultimate decision is left to the player. Understood?"

Everyone nodded. "Let the game begin," she said, setting the chips out with a smile.

Each team had two piles of black and three of white. Scarlett told Derek that she and Marti would play at the same time to even everything, and would be the first to play against them.

Derek, knowing she would most likely be the strength of the team, went against them. Scarlett shuffled rapidly and easily, and presented the deck to Derek for him to cut. He cut it, and then leaned back in his chair to watch her suspiciously as she dealt.

Derek looked at his cards and smirked. This was already a good hand.

Scarlett was pointing to various cards, whispering in her ear the different meanings. Marti suddenly exclaimed, "We have a really good hand, then!"

Scarlett immediately shushed her, and glared at Derek. "Put in your blind, and then go," she told him, putting the big blind out- two white chips.

Derek put his one white chip out and then considered his hand. He had the beginnings of a full house. There were only three hands that could beat a full house.

"I'll raise two thousand," he said, putting four black chips out.

Immediately she tossed out four black chips, and tossed out another quadruplet on top of them. "I'll raise you another two," she said.

"I'll call," he said his face emotionless as he put out another four.

Scarlett took the first card and set it aside. "The burn card," she explained to her team. Then, one by one, she flipped up three more.

One Ace of hearts, one Queen of hearts, and a seven of spades.

Derek had in his hand pocket Queens **(two Queens).** He already had three of a kind. He now could get either four of a kind or a full house, both of which were killer hands. He was guessing that Scarlett had two hearts in her hands, and that she was going on a flush **(five cards of the same suit)**, which was a fairly common but a decent hand.

"It's your turn," she said, her voice slightly mocking as he hesitated.

"I'll check," he said. **(Not raising, and not giving up)**

"I'll raise another four," she said nonchalantly.

Derek hesitated again. Already a fourth of her pile was in the pot. That was quite a confident move. But she was probably trying to bully him into folding, since she knew he'd heard Marti say it was a good hand.

"I'll call," he said coolly, and tossed the chips in.

Scarlett grinned, and took another burn card off the pile. Then she flipped up an Ace of spades.

He now had a full house. He leaned back in his chair, smirking. "I'll raise five," he said, and motioned for Edwin to put the proper amount in.

"I'll call," said Scarlett smoothly, "and raise you another two." She helped Marti put out the chips.

"I'll call," he said, glaring at her. Why was she being so stubborn? The stakes were amounting to half their piles.

She smirked at him, and burned another card. The card she flipped up was a ten of hearts. She was still smirking. Did she really have something?

No. He had to risk it. The winner of the first hand would have the dominant status. "I'll raise two."

"Eight," she said immediately.

He was too far in now to quit. A little fearfully, he gestured for Edwin to put the chips out.

Scarlett flashed him a singularly unpleasant grin. "It's your turn to show your cards," she said sweetly.

Derek smirked and laid down his pocket Queens. "Full house," he said. "Will you look at that."

Scarlett's face fell in dismay as she laid down her cards. Derek felt like roaring his triumph- until his gaze lowered to her hand. The two cards beneath her fingertips were mostly blank. There was a single diamond on one. On the other was a single club. That could mean only one thing.

Four of a kind.

"Oh, no," he groaned.

"Looks like you were bested, Derek," laughed Casey.

Scarlett said nothing. She merely raked in the pile, and grinned at Marti. "You beat him, Marti!" she whispered.

"I beat Smerek!" crowed Marti, and gave Scarlett a high five.

The next hour was passed in excruciating torment. Derek won several pots, large ones; but he always seemed to lose the entire thing again in a hand or two. Sam was completely useless on his own, but could be trusted to follow directions. Edwin was a little too adventurous, but could be kept in line with darkly murmured threats in his ear. Both were decent enough actors, and smart enough not to give off any tells when they were lying. So _why _was he losing?

He swore those demurely lowered green eyes mocked him. What was _with_ this girl? Was she cheating? He prided himself on the fact that nothing could get past him, but yet here she was, laughing at him as she won.

Finally they were down to a mere five thousand. It was going to be Edwin's turn to sit in the hotspot.

Derek looked up at Scarlett. It was time to get going. There was no way he was going to play nicely anymore. The King of Conniving and Cheating was going into full attack mode.

"We need a break to discuss our strategy and stretch our legs," said Derek, before she could shuffle. "Say, fifteen minutes? Snacking, too?"

"Sure," said Scarlett, and put down the deck of cards. Then she brought out a little vial of green sand. She swept a hand across the pile of cards, spreading them out so that they overlapped evenly, one by one. Then she poured the green sand in an unbroken line over the cards. "This is to prevent cheating," she explained. "There is no more green sand left. If a single card is moved, we'll all know." Scarlett glanced up at him before she rose. "Have fun trying to worm your way around _that, _Venturi," she whispered.

_I'm going to strangle her, _vowed Derek.

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Scarlett was holding a little meeting of her own. She moved her gaze over Scarlett and Lizzie. "What do you guys want to play?" she asked.

"I don't care," shrugged Casey. "I just want to win this."

"Hey, Marti, what do you want to play?" asked Lizzie, biting her lip.

"What you want to play, Lizzie," she piped happily.

Scarlett grinned. "Apparently, she likes you. Well?"

Lizzie shifted a little. "I'm good at soccer," she said slowly.

"Excellent!" exclaimed Scarlett. "That's another one of my favorite sports. I like how you think. Now, if you want to play that, you must listen very carefully to what I say."

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Edwin was sitting by the lake, skipping stones, when Lizzie sat down suddenly beside him.

"Oh, ah, Lizzie," he stammered.

"I have a proposition," she began.

"I won't go against Derek." His voice was not as convinced as it should have been, however.

"You don't even know what the bribe is yet," she said. "You may want to reconsider."

"Try me," he scoffed.

"Well," she began, scooting a little bit closer to him. "Some girl that thinks she might like you will be very, very grateful for being able to play her favorite sport tomorrow. And she would most likely show her gratitude." Her chin was tilted up slightly towards him, in kissable range, clearly telling him what the reward would be.

Edwin gulped. "Whaddo I have to do?"

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Edwin's turn in the hotspot passed unremarkably, Derek gaining another few thousand back. But when Sam sat down, against Casey, things heated up.

Derek had told Sam to go all in. Unhesitantly Sam had pushed all of the chips into the center of the table, seemingly confident.

Edwin blinked twice.

Lizzie leaned down to whisper something into Casey's ear.

"We'll call you," said Casey.

Sam's face fell as he laid down an Ace of clubs and a ten. There was a ten on the board- a medium pair. A crappy hand.

There was a tense silence as Casey hesitated. "Three of a kind!" she suddenly shouted, triumphantly.

Derek turned ever so slowly towards Edwin. "Ed," he said dangerously.

Very wisely, Edwin turned tail and ran.

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Scarlett smiled as she put away the chips and deck, watching Casey kiss Sam happily. Sam no longer seemed to care about the result of the game, as Casey was on his lap.

Derek had returned in a slightly less foul mood. So had Edwin returned, who was dripping wet (presumably from an unwanted dip in the lake). However, he was grinning stupidly, as there was a little bit of cherry lip gloss remaining on his mouth. Lizzie was giggling softly in the girl's tent.

Scarlett laughed softly, and watched as Derek savagely ripped open the boy's tent, and flopped onto his sleeping bag.

_The King faces a usurper._

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Thar you go, peoples! If only to say 'it sucked' or 'it was ok' or even a single word, I appreciate reviews! It helps me figure out what I'm doing right and wrong. 

événement: happening, or occurence, in French.

The fluff between Scarlett and Marti will have a purpose later on. Or at least I think so.

Just so you know, probably the next three or more chapters will all be out camping. I'm having the Canadian spring break be about two weeks long, and I really have no idea how long the actual one is.

Hope you enjoyed it!


	7. Breakfast, Soccer, and Alarm

Okey dokey. Here is the next chapter. I hope that my humor isn't insipid. I laughed…

R&R plz.

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Breakfast, Soccer, and an Alarming Discovery

The next day dawned bright and early, the birds chirping pleasantly all around the little grouping of tents, and the air cool.

Scarlett emerged into the clearing at around six o'clock, rubbing her eyes sleepily, and breathing deeply of the clean air.

By seven she was dressed and ready for the day, and began helping Nora cook breakfast.

Not until quarter to nine did another head peep out of a tent. Casey was one of the first up, Lizzie trailing behind her by a few minutes and yawning exaggeratedly. Both of them were ready in another hour, and both began helping with breakfast as well.

By ten thirty breakfast was ready (some of it already very cold), and George and Sam were up.

"Knowing Edwin," scoffed Lizzie, "he's probably awake and just sleeping because Derek is."

"No," said George, "those boys can sleep until two o'clock."

"They're not going to today," decided Nora, and rose.

"Let me," said Scarlett sweetly, a wicked smile on her mouth.

With all the assured and languid grace of a cat she rose, taking a glass of cold water, and strode over to the boy's tent.

There suddenly was a very loud "Aaaah!" heard from the depths of tent, and sounds of a violent struggle floated out to the puzzled and slightly amused onlookers.

Within a very few minutes, Edwin fell out of the tent backwards and right on his butt, holding a towel and a sack full of shower necessities. His hair was tussled, and he was in boxers and a tee shirt. His face harbored a slightly baffled expression. It cleared after he dazedly rose, and saw everyone. His face turned bright red and he scampered off in the direction of the showers.

Scarlett's head poked out of the tent for a minute. "I need a pitcher of water," she said calmly.

Casey, hiding a rather sadistic grin, handed one to her. It was freezing cold, the ice in it just having melted. Nora snickered in spite of herself, and George held his breath in mirth and suppressed excitement, not at all sorry for his eldest son.

The next instant a thunderous roar was heard from the inside of the tent. Scarlett, laughing in evil delight, burst out of the tent. Then she sat down at the picnic table and set the now empty pitcher down casually. Then, turning slowly to face her audience, a benign and satisfied smile flitted over her face. "He's awake," she said in a self-satisfied little voice, smirking.

Derek emerged from the tent just then, his hair flat (for it was drenched in water) and his face a black mask of anger. Scarlett had turned around and began eating her breakfast. He strode over to her and threw her up onto his shoulder before she realized what was occuring.

Once she did realize what had happened, she immediately began to protest- violently. "Put me down, you idiot!" she screamed, kicking and beating at his back.

Everyone's faces convulsed as Derek's intention became clear. He paid no attention whatsoever to her thrashings, walking with long and purposeful steps over the dirt track that served as a road, onto the green grass, and to a ledge that hung over the lake. Every single person's eyes followed their progress, even though said eyes were a little blocked with tears of mirth.

Once he reached the ledge, he slid her slight form into a cradle hold, and looked at her.

Her green eyes were even larger than normal, turning to brilliant and rock hard emeralds in warning. "You dare…" she hissed under her breath.

"I dare," he affirmed, and tossed her into the lake.

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Scarlett emerged dripping wet ten minutes later, having had to swim through the very cold water to a point where she could get back onto land. Her shoes were gone, her white tank clung to her skin, and her waterlogged capris hung on her. Her lips were blue, although she refused to shiver as she stalked up to the camp.

No one said a word as she walked up, everyone just watching her. The only person who didn't seem fascinated by her was Derek, who was drinking orange juice and looking carefully detached.

Scarlett sent him a look of acute loathing, which he did not respond to, and disposed herself onto a chair, scooting it as close to the dying fire as possible.

Nora, trying for her sake not to smile, handed her a plate of food she'd kept warm on the fire. Casey, the only person that was truly sympathetic towards her, handed her a mug of tea and an understanding look.

No one said a word all morning, although almost every single person was smiling. Even Scarlett, as she warmed up, suffered from a faint grin hovering around the corner of her mouth.

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Midday saw the troop heading to the soccer field near the station for the campsite, Nora and George having been informed of everyone's 'choice,' and blissfully unaware of the true nature of the goings on the night before.

The field was wonderful. The grass was clipped short and thick, and was painted with the appropriate lines. The soccer goals actually had nets in them, and the field was the perfect size for their purposes. Also, there was another family, comprised of an around thirty couple, and two children (a guy and a girl) that were about fourteen years old, that wished to play soccer as well.

Lizzie and Edwin became instant friends with the guy and the girl, being around their age. The teams were formed as follows:

Crusaders: George, Derek, Sam, Tom (the father), Lisa (the mother), Maria (the daughter).

Romans (thanks to Nora): Nora, Casey, Scarlett, Edwin, Lizzie, Jake (the son).

Marti had opted to being a cheerleader, having found some fallen pine branches that would serve beautifully as pom poms.

**(This is intolerably boring so don't read it, just refer to it if you are lost later)**

Crusaders' goalie: Tom (to be later switched to George.

Crusaders' defense: George (to be later switched to Tom) and Maria.

Crusaders' offense: Derek, Sam, and Lisa.

Romans' goalie: Nora (to be later switched with Jake)

Romans' defense: Casey (to be later switched with Edwin) and Jake (to be later switched with Nora).

Romans' offense: Scarlett, Lizzie, and Edwin (to be later switched with Casey).

**(End of boring part)**

**(I'll underline the characters that are Romans)**

The game started off with a bang, Lizzie stealing the ball from Sam in the center and passing it to Edwin, who passed it to Scarlett, who then passed it to Lizzie, who was then next to the goal and scored.

Scarlett stuck her tongue out at Derek.

"First goal," he said, shrugging it off. "We just need to get used to each other."

Tom punted the ball all the way to the opposite end of the field, Jake earning chuckles by having the ball bounce off his head and into Nora's hands. Surprisingly, she did not drop it. Smiling with delight at her success, she threw it as far as she could, straight to Lizzie.

Lizzie dribbled it down the field easily, slipping past Sam even easier. But before she could pass it, Derek had stolen the ball.

Now, soccer was not Derek's best sport, but he had had a bit of experience in junior high, and he was fit. However, it would be a mistake to rely upon him to keep the ball when confronted by an opposer. He saw Scarlett bearing down on him, and reluctantly passed it to Lisa.

Lisa, surprising everyone, scored a goal. Casey had not been able to stop her (as she had no idea what she was doing).

Derek crowed, punching the air. "In your _face,_" he shouted at Scarlett.

She rolled her eyes. This was going to be less pleasant than a fun little family game if she allowed Derek to get to her and make her mad, and ruin everyone's day she would not.

However, as the game progressed, Scarlett felt her temper slowly crumbling as Derek scored goal after goal and his taunts continued and grew exponentially. By the time a break was called, the Crusaders were four points ahead, and Scarlett was silently fuming.

After the break, Scarlett switched Nora and Jake, as Jake claimed he was a stellar goalie and Scarlett really had no intention of allowing the ball to get that far onto their side anyways. Casey she switched with Edwin, knowing that she had to have _someone_ reliable back there.

George, complaining about all the running (despite the fact that he was defense), switched of his own accord with Tom, and the game began afresh.

It rapidly become apparent to Derek that he had to redouble his efforts. Scarlett and Lizzie were slaughtering everyone with their teamwork. No one seemed able to stop them reliably. They were ahead after a half hour.

To his disgust even Casey scored, winning the game. His temper boiled over when the Romans sent up a cheer and Casey turned pink with pleasure.

"Lucky shot," he scoffed, his voice unpleasant. "How could _you_ be expected to score?"

A look of genuine hurt flashed across Casey's face, but even as it disappeared a telltale glimmer in her eyes told of unshed tears.

Derek felt a pang of guilt. That had been low.

Scarlett turned rage filled eyes towards him as Casey stumbled away from the group, muttering that she needed a drink. Derek shrank a little under her incensed gaze, already being guilty enough.

"What is the matter with you?" she demanded in a harsh undertone once she got close enough.

"I- I don't …"

"I thought you were arrogant, and maybe a bit of a jerk, but I didn't think you were capable of _this,_" she said, her face livid. "Your stepsister is out there, _crying, _because of you."

Then she stomped away.

Sam understood his best friend in ways that most did not. "Dude," he said seriously. "You've gotta apologize."

Derek bit his lip. "Derek Venturi can't apologize," he explained. "I just… can't."

"Whatever, man. But you've gotta do something, and do it fast."

Derek pulled on his hair. _Why_ had he gone and lost his temper? Now all of this, just because of that one little blunder!

Try as he might, though, he couldn't convince even himself that it wasn't that bad or that it wasn't his fault, unlike all the other times in his life.

He groaned and headed out into the woods in the direction Casey had taken.

He found her, after ten minutes of wandering, on a log with her head sunk in her hands. She was sobbing.

Derek expelled a long breath. This was going to be torture. _Come on, man. You deserve it, so suck it up._

Awkwardly he went over to the log and sat down beside her, putting a hesitant arm around her shoulders.

He felt her stiffen with dismay. "Go away, Derek," she said in a low voice.

"I'm trying to apologize… without apologizing," he responded. "At least I'm trying. Will you give me a chance?"

She sniffed noncommittally. Derek sighed. "Look, I was just mad at Scarlett, and I'm not used to losing."

"I'll never forgive you until you say the word," said Casey, looking up at him with her blue gray eyes. She was sensing that suddenly she had power. She was not one to question good fortune, and was planning on using it to her advantage.

"S-" he began, trying to force it out. "Soh-rie. _Sorry!" _

"You apologized," she said, amazed.

"Yeah, well, don't count on it happening again," he said, embarrassed.

Casey smiled at him through her tears, and hugged Derek in earnest.

He grimaced, and was able to tolerate it for two seconds. "Okay, sibling fluff time is over," he said, pushing her off.

Strangely, she took this with equanimity, and gave him a watery smile. "Thanks, Derek."

"Don't _ever_ tell _anyone _about this," he grumbled.

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Nora was sitting at the stone table next to the camping station when she two people emerge from the tree line. "Uh, George?" she said, her eyes wide with equal amazement and disbelief.

"Huh, what?" he asked, and then saw the direction of her gaze.

What he saw was no ordinary sight. It was nearly a miracle. It was Derek and Casey- and they weren't screaming at each other.

Sam saw them next, and sank back in his place with a little sigh of satisfaction. Now he could tell Casey (halfway truthfully) that it was all him that Derek had apologized. That would earn him several points.

Edwin and Lizzie exchanged amazed looks as they saw their stepsiblings. Casey came over and sat down, smiling beatifically. Derek, however, did not sit down, as a brunette wearing skin tight capris and a belly shirt had just walked past and smiled at him. He immediately joined her, and within a very few minutes he had his arm slung around her waist and was locking lips with her.

Edwin sighed in acute jealousy, Lizzie rolled her eyes, and Nora blushed in embarrasment. Marti, cheerfully uninterested, went over to Scarlett and jumped in her lap. "I went to see Nutkin again," she whispered conspiratorially.

"What?" asked Scarlett, snapping out of her reflections (and anger).

"Nutkin remembered me. I gave him some peanut butter. He liked it," she said proudly.

"I'll bet he did," said Scarlett, rather grimly. "Did you go up there all by yourself, Marti?"

"Uh huh!" she chirped, unaware of her folly.

"Marti, that's a long way," said Scarlett, her voice tight with worry. "If you want to go again, I'll take you. Please don't go by yourself, munchkin!"

"Okay, Letty," said Marti, in a light voice that bade ill for the promise she'd just given.

Scarlett forced herself to be content with this, and gave up. It wasn't as if Marti was _her_ kid. But through the times she'd spent among the MacDonalds/Venturis, she'd developed a very keen fondness for the blithe little girl, and it was hard to stay clear of what was not her business.

Shrugging it off as Derek and Casey approached, she tried to forget about it. She unfortunately succeeded.

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Okay, well there it is. You won't find out just how unfortunate it is that she forgot for another one, possibly two, chapters. Thanks for reading! 

Please review! It inspires me! (Which, I guess isn't very good incentive because you probably could care less whether I'm inspired or not… -sighs-). And no one's given me any pointers yet…


	8. Many Mixed Events

I have had the disturbing inkling that the quality of my writing is steadily going down with every chapter I post. Or maybe I'm just losing the spark or whatever that I had for writing the story to begin with. Grr…

Well, here goes anyways.

Very sorry for the confusion, claire. I didn't mean for there to be any Dasey hints. The little apology scene was supposed to reinforce the _sibling_ relationship, and also show that Derek can be a good guy. Read chapter seven again- I added a part that should help once merged with this chapter.

Thanks to all of you who are reading!

* * *

Many Mixed Events

The troop returned to the campsite in a surprisingly good state of mind. However, Derek and Casey's unusual harmony with each other ended when Casey flipped the radio station to her favorite pop, off of the station that played Derek's rock. This of course sent them straight into a heated argument.

Nora, slightly relieved at the returning of normality and slightly exasperated, rolled her eyes. George had by now become inured to all forms of sibling conflict, and scarcely noticed them.

Once they reached the camp, everyone emptied out of the van and went their separate ways. Derek headed over to the lake, not sure of what he wanted to do.

"You could help with supper, you know," came a voice from behind him.

"Me? Help?" he said, raising an eyebrow in amazement at Scarlett's density.

"You know, its not so outlandish to be nice once in a while," she snapped. "Do you realize how hard Nora works all the time? She has a full time job, _and _she's a housewife. You really have no idea how hard either thing is, do you?"

What was with her tone? It was _waspish_. "Cool it," he said calmly. "You're neither my mother nor my stepmother."

"Thank goodness for that," she nearly screamed at him. "I'd be insane by now! No wonder your mother left your father- because of _you_!"

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_A young Derek, about nine years old, peeked around the corner of the banister, watching his parents with luminous eyes. _

"_Listen, George," hissed a woman's voice. It was Mother. "I'm sick of this house, I'm sick of staying here all the time, I'm sick of you, and I'm sick of those brats! There is no way you're keeping me here this time!"_

"_You don't say anything about the children," came George's voice, foreign to Derek's ears because it was so harsh. _

"_I'll say whatever I please! I hate those little monsters- every single one of them! Two horrible little boys were bad enough, but then you get me pregnant _again, _and now I have a wrinkled and ugly little beast of a girl that doesn't do anything other than scream and fill diapers!"_

"_She has colic, and she's only four months old. You just shut up about the kids, Diana."_

_Mother laughed unpleasantly. "I don't care about them anymore. I don't care about you anymore. I've been cheating on you these past three months. And then, I realized: why cheat? Why stay here any more? I'm divorcing you, Mr. Venturi, and marrying my lover! Then I'll be as far away as I can from those animals! I won't even share the same last name with them- and you can have them! I don't want to see_ _them ever again!"_

_Derek watched Diana pick up her suitcase and waltz out of the house, slamming the door behind her. _**(Note how Derek refferred to his mom as Mother until the end)**

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Scarlett had regretted the words before they were out of her mouth. She had known nothing about Derek's mother- her wildly thrust sword had found his heart completely unintentionally. She had no idea of this, and was therefore totally unprepared for his reaction.

He didn't blow up. He didn't say a word. But his expressive chocolate eyes unfocused as they relived the memory, reflecting hurt and betrayal.

Then, when he came out of it, his two warm brown eyes hardened to brittle topaz jewels. Without saying a thing, he turned on his heel and walked off into the woods.

That was worse than if he'd slapped her. Scarlett stood in the middle of the clearing by the lake, staring at the ground. Silently and slowly she went back to the camp, and ate in silence. No one questioned where Derek was.

But the guilt ate away at her every second that ticked away. Finally, twenty minutes after supper had finished, she couldn't take it anymore. "I'm going for a walk," she said quietly to Nora. "Don't worry about me if it gets a little late."

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The woods were dark and cool, and strangely comforting. Scarlett followed no trail or magical intuition; she merely wandered, looking occasionally for signs of Derek.

The dead pine needles muted her footsteps as she continued her walk, enjoying the absolute silence. _Now its my turn to apologize to someone who's stormed off into the woods, _she thought, the irony of it less than humorous.

Darkness fell, casting pleasing calm over the forest floor. Scarlett thrust her hands into her jeans pockets.

She didn't know how long she walked, but she was conscious of the gradual deepening of the night as all of the nocturnal beings began their nightly habits.

Scarlett had been walking on a gradual, easy incline for quite some time. Now it started getting more serious, becoming noticeably more rocky and considerably more steep.

The trees began to thin as she continued walking, her mind blank. Then, quite abruptly, she broke out onto a small treeless area that overhung a huge, deep valley that was closed in on all sides by cliffs. The walls of these were sheer, plunging down vertically more than a hundred feet until they sloped to the valley's floor. It was like a giant had taken a huge, irregular shaped ice cream spoon and scooped a large swath of the earth.

The moon was once again bright, and her eyes flew across the gaping hole to see a solitary figure sitting cross legged on the grass, and looking over the valley. Quickly, before he saw her, she melted back into the trees. She didn't want him avoiding her.

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Derek suddenly saw a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. But when he turned to examine the spot more carefully, there was nothing there. Probably an animal.

He sighed, playing with a strand of grass he'd torn off. Why had he walked off like that? He was hungry!

But he really had no desire to go back. All he wanted to do was look over the valley and muse over the events of late.

However, the events of late that his mind seemed inclined to think about only contained Scarlett. This was not acceptable to the more reasonable (or was it really the unreasonable?) part of his mind.

He groaned in frustration and lowered his back onto the grass, shutting his eyes and letting the cool breeze waft over him. He wasn't cold, even though it was only sixty degrees out. He was wearing jeans and his favorite leather jacket, after all.

When he next opened his eyes, he saw Scarlett's upside down face peering at him, surrounded by stars.

He grunted and shut his eyes, thinking he was still dreaming. Then it hit him- in dreams, enticing images were not upside down. Derek expelled a long, harassed breath.

"I just came to say I was sorry," her voice whispered. It was full of contrition, and something else: worry.

She was worried he wouldn't forgive her? Derek raised a mental eyebrow in interest. _Let her think you hate her, _chuckled a devious little voice in his head. _She'll be forced to explain herself, which is always good._

"Derek," she tried again, her voice sounding broken. "I didn't mean it. I didn't know that you had some memory or something about your mother. I was just… I don't know. I mean, you were being so nice for once, and then you had to go off with that brunette. I was like, je-" ere she trailed off in confusion, obviously not having meant to say anything of the sort.

"You were…" he prodded, sitting up and opening his eyes. This was starting to get interesting.

Scarlett looked away.

"You were jealous," he breathed.

"I was not!" she said indignantly, and a little too hastily.

Derek laughed. Here was the Player in all of his glory. This was how things were supposed to be.

However, things took a detour into uncomfortable territory. "Derek, why _did _you run off?" she asked softly.

He settled back down onto the grass. "I like the other subject better," he said lightly.

"I want to know. You can tell me anything."

There was something about the soft, insistent quality in her voice. Or maybe it was the kind, compassionate light radiating from her eyes. Whatever it was, he found himself talking- and he couldn't stop, despite his most valiant efforts.

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Scarlett listened to Derek relate the memory in as few phrases as possible. There were no mentions of his emotions at all. In fact, his narration was executed with a cold way, devoid of anything.

When he finished, Scarlett laid an impulsive hand on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault, you know," she whispered.

He didn't respond.

Scarlett underwent a revelation. "That's why you womanize, and are arrogant, and can't be kind for the life of you. You can't be tied down, or risk being betrayed again, because someone might hurt you like she did."

"Aren't we a five star shrink?" said Derek sarcastically.

Scarlett winced, and forced back the nasty reply that had been ready on her tongue. "I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. But, I'm not the best at comforting a guy without touching his precious male macho-ness."

That drew a reluctant smile.

"Do you forgive me?" she asked.

"Well, I won't be able to kiss you unless I forgive you," he said.

"You won't be able to kiss me at all," retorted Scarlett.

"Really?" he asked, coming closer to her.

"Please don't," she said softly.

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Derek looked down into her green eyes and read the test. She was irresistible, and yet she was asking him to resist.

It was a struggle. But Derek rose to the occasion, and backed off. If he would have looked at her, he would have seen the small, surprised half-smile on her lips. But his face was carefully schooled into a blank canvas and turned away from her.

They walked slowly back towards the camp, neither spoiling the beautiful hush of the woods.

"I'm still going to get you tomorrow," said Derek as they neared the clearing.

Scarlett halted and looked up at him, considering. After a lengthy pause, she said sweetly, "Je vous desire un bonne nuit, laid pomme de terre."

"That better not have been an insult," he remarked.

"Pummel me, then- if you can catch me!" she shot back.

"That I can do," he said, smiling, and lunged at her.

He grinned at her playful, half-serious shriek, and pumped his legs even faster to close in on her.

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Derek became increasingly more uncomfortably aware of his growing familiarity with Scarlett as the days wore on. He no longer wanted to seize her and start necking; he wanted to tell her a joke or listen to her talk. _This is not natural_, he thought, upset. It was alarming to his rigidly 'male' perceptions. Talking is not something you did with a girl for fun.

And so, he went into defense mode.

At every occasion he could, he insulted her or scoffed at her. He ignored her until he was forced to notice her. He went out of his way to avoid doing things with her. He flirted outrageously with every new girl that he saw, ignoring the stab of pain the hurt lurking in her eyes caused him.

It seemed to be working. Derek just didn't know how well.

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Casey opened the flap of the tent and zipped it shut. Scarlett was on the bed, face down. This was unusual for her. Typically, she was up and ready by six.

"Come on, Scarlett," she said, in a patronizing tone. "Its nearly nine. You need to get up."

Scarlett looked up at her, and quickly turned away. It was not quick enough to hide the streaks of mascara on her cheeks.

"You _were_ up. And you're crying!" exclaimed Casey.

"No, I'm laughing," came an irritated and watery voice.

"Hey, I didn't do it. Did I?" she suddenly asked, looking just as suddenly worried. Using only one breath and going a mile a minute hysterically, she blurted, "I know I've been abandoning you a lot for Sam and leaving you with Derek, but-"

"You're an idiot," said Scarlett bluntly. "But you wouldn't be as much of a one if you would just loosen up a little."

"Right," said Casey, a little deflated. "So, what's wrong?"

"What but the usual?" asked Scarlett, depressed.

"Oh, right. Derek," she said understandingly. "But he didn't do anything major lately, and his little remarks never bother _you _that much, so-" Then something clicked in Casey's very slow brain.

"You like Derek," she said slowly.

"No!" protested Scarlett, but she was not vehement enough.

"I can't believe you!" shouted Casey. Then, she gave a snort of disdain. "What Derek wants, Derek gets." Then she ran out of the tent.

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Scarlett couldn't help herself. A fresh wave of tears spilled over her face. Rebelliously she dashed them away, and rose. With a wet wipe she removed what she hoped was all of her ruined makeup, and started afresh.

It took her several minutes, and when she finished it was nearing breakfast. Scarlett went out of the tent and sat down at the large picnic table, trying to appear collected.

"There's a huge snowstorm coming in," said George, who had been listening to the radio. "Its supposed to get here in an hour or so. I guess we're not going anywhere for a while."

Just then Nora came into view, an odd look plastered onto her face. "George," she said, in a strange voice, "where's Marti?"

Instantly everyone fell silent. The next second, pandemonioum had erupted, and everyone was running everywhere to look for her.

Everyone except a deadly white Scarlett. She knew already that Marti was not at the camp. Every morning just before breakfast, without fail, she would bounce into Derek's tent and awaken Smerek. This morning she had not.

And Scarlett knew where she had gone. Apparently, Marti had taken the idea of paying Nutkin an early morning visit.

* * *

_Je vous desire un bonne nuit, laid pomme de terre_: in my terrible translation, "I wish you a good night, you ugly potato." Hey, I don't know that much French, okay?

Of course, Scarlett can't do the smart thing and tell the rescue party that is organized where Marti is. That would spoil my gloomy little episode.

PS: This story might end badly. I'm for realism, and with all of what is going on, I might have to kill Scarlett and/or Marti off. Then I'll have to change the categories though. If you don't want it to end badly, review and tell me. If enough of you hate the idea, I'll weigh the odds in favor of a happy ending.


	9. Desperation

I will put Sam in the next chapter, Danielle. I agree with you. I was just encountering problems having all the original characters included enough.

* * *

Desperation

Scarlett pushed aside her dread as the wind buffeted her nearly off the path. She would not think of failure- only of a little girl on the side of a mountain, all alone and shivering.

She was wearing two thick parka type coats, and in her backpack she carried first aid, an electric blanket, a lantern, and the materials needed to start a fire. Also she had managed to stuff in a warm metal thermos of soup for Marti.

_Don't think about her lying dead or nearly so, _she instructed herself. _If she is, she is, and there's nothing you can do about it. All you can do is get up there as fast as you can. _

She felt a sudden stab of fear as a large snowflake hit her cheek, the cold of it stinging. She should have told everyone where Marti was, just in case she failed.

It was too late now.

The reason she hadn't told was because they would have stopped her for sure. And Scarlett was fairly certain that they wouldn't get any help from the authorities soon enough. Who wanted to risk their life searching for a tiny, probably already dead little six year old that was

The wind raged around her, and soon visibility was reduced to a few feet. Scarlett could only hope that she was still on the path.

When she had lost all hope that she would ever find the cave, she saw it. A fuzzy, blackish gray patch in front of her.

New energy flowed through her tired muscles. "Marti!" she yelled. "Marti, can you hear me?"

There was an interminable pause. Then she heard a faint, almost nonexistent, call. "Letty?"

Scarlett stumbled forward as fast as she could. She seemed to be going in slow motion, it took so long to reach the owner of that frail little voice. But then she felt something cold and shivering against her hand.

She felt almost sick with relief. "It's okay, baby," she said, pulling Marti up to her. "I'm going to get you warm. Hold on a minute, baby."

"C-can y-y-you g-get N-nut-k-kin wa-arm t-t-t-too?" asked Marti, her teeth chattering.

Scarlett paused her frantic undoing of the coats and saw the limp form of Nutkin held tightly up against Marti's chest. "Sure, baby," she smiled weakly. Then, finally succeeding in unzipping the two jackets and opening the front of her own, she pulled Marti up against her skin, putting all of the layers back on, and resolutely ignoring Marti's whimper of pain at the sudden change in temperature.

It wasn't too pleasant for Scarlett either. Marti was ice cold, and the shock of it nearly made her fall backwards. She gritted her teeth, and bore it.

The wind still raged around them. The 'cave' they were in wasn't really a cave at all, just a little indent in the mountain. But at least it sheltered them from the worst of the wind.

After many long minutes they were the same temperature as the other- cold, but not freezing. Scarlett brought her backpack around to the front. "Are you hungry, munchkin?" she asked gently.

Marti nodded her head sleepily. Scarlett brought the thermos up and poured the soup into the cap. It was still very hot.

Since Marti's arms were trapped in the coat, Scarlett had to feed her. It was a tricky business, but the thawing little girl was as hungry as a bear and needed the internal heat the soup would give her. Also, she would need the sustenance. If this storm continued the way it was, they might be holed up for a considerable amount of time.

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"I called the authorities," said Nora, her voice strained, "but they won't be able to get here quicker than tomorrow because they can't fly in. The station doesn't have the ability to get together a safe search party."

Everyone jumped as George's fist slammed down onto the table. They had set up a tent over it, and there was a space heater going full throttle. "That'll be too late!" he roared.

Derek felt numb. Smarti was gone. His Smarti was out there, all by herself, probably dying of hypothermia as he sat.

A gloomy silence fell over the party. George tapped his fingers, Sam was holding Casey, Nora had her arm on her husband's shoulder, and Derek couldn't sit still. Edwin was fidgeting nervously.

Then, suddenly, Lizzie looked around. "Where's Scarlett?" she suddenly asked.

Everyone froze.

"I saw her come out of her tent this morning," said Nora slowly, "and sit down. Then you told us about the storm, and I realized that I hadn't seen Marti. I don't remember seeing her after that."

"I did," said Casey quietly. "She went white when you said something. I hadn't been paying attention, and when I saw her I asked what was going on."

"I faintly remember her getting some soup and putting on all sorts of layers," offered Edwin.

Derek looked up. "She went after Marti," he said blankly.

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Scarlett had somehow managed to get the electric blanket fastened around the entrance of the indent, keeping some of the gusts out and also radiating heat.

Despite all these things, Scarlett's lips were blue. It was freezing out there.

She'd given all of the soup to Marti, and scooped some snow into the thermos for water later. For now, they were fine. But Scarlett knew that if the storm did not loosen its fierce grip soon, they would have no chance.

"Letty," said Marti, nearly crying, "Nutkin isn't moving. He'll be okay, right?"

Scarlett looked down into Marti's grey eyes and hadn't the courage to lie to her. "He might, munchkin. We've done all we can, and its up to him now whether he lives or not."

Marti nodded tearfully, and looked down.

After another hour of relative silence, Marti began.

"Letty," she whined.

"Yes, munchkin?" sighed Scarlett.

"I'm bored. When are we going to leave?"

"Soon, Marti," she replied tiredly, and she smiled wanly.

After the sixtieth time Marti asked the exact same question, Scarlett became fed up. "All right. You can't ask that question unless you spend twenty points on it. To get points you have to do what I tell you or answer my questions right. Okay?"

"Okay," agreed Marti cheerfully.

That was how the next three hours were passed. However, even as Marti off into sleep, the storm still blustered mercilessly around them. Scarlett sat with a grim smile plastered onto her face, her desperation mounting with every passing minute.

She looked down at Marti's tranquilly sleeping face, and a tear escaped from her and flowed down her cheek.

* * *


	10. Marti, where is Scarlett?

Thanks, Danielle and Serenity Rain for the reviews, and to all others who have reviewed in the past! It means a great deal!

I have decided on the solution for the climax. Btw, I have Sam and Casey basically back together.

* * *

Smarti, Smerek- Scarlett?

Derek was pacing back and forth in the tent, listening to his father's report on the status of everything with ill concealed contempt.

When George told them that the storm was probably going to continue full force until late that night, Derek exploded.

"Why can't these #$ people do what they're supposed to?" he yelled.

Everyone flinched as though he'd hit them.

"They're supposed to risk their lives to save others, no questions asked! And yet they sit at the station twiddling their thumbs, and shaking their head at the storm!"

Casey began to sob softly.

"Look, man," interrupted Sam. "_We _can't do anything about it. All you're doing is getting yourself worked up and everyone depressed. Just cool it."

Derek looked at his best friend with murderous eyes for several long moments. Sam returned the glare calmly, his arm around Casey's shoulder. Then Derek slumped back into his chair in defeat.

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Later, Casey was talking to Sam. "I can't believe this," she sobbed. "My little sister and my best friend are going to die out there. You know what the last thing I said to Scarlett was? Do you?"

Sam shook his head, trying to sooth her.

"I said, Derek gets what Derek wants. Like I hated her. And then I stormed off."

Sam sighed, drawing her into his lap and stroking her hair. She was shuddering uncontrollably, having worked herself into a fit of hysteria.

After many long moments, Casey calmed enough to look up at him with a tearstained face. "What will happen?" she whispered.

"I don't know," answered Sam, and then looked at her considering, as though measuring her reaction to a piece of news.

"What is it?" she asked nervously, sensing he might tell her something.

"Don't freak out, but… Derek is going after them tonight."

"_What?_" she squeaked.

Sam put a hand over her mouth as she began to rant, not letting go until she calmed. She glared at him. "Okay, okay," said Sam. "But you were going to tell everyone this side of Canada if I didn't do that."

"Why would he do it?" she asked.

"Because his little sister and the love of his life (though he won't agree to the latter) are going to die if he doesn't try. And if he dies trying, there won't be anything lost, or so he reasons."

Casey sat staring blankly at the side of the tent for a long time. Unshed tears still glistened in her eyes. Finally she buried her face in Sam's shirt. "I'm so scared," she muttered.

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High up on the mountain, Scarlett and Marti huddled against the back of the indent. The electric blanket had been ripped free by a powerful gust of wind, and borne out of sight within seconds.

Try as she might, Scarlett could not get a fire to start. The snow laden wind kept snuffing it out.

The temperature around them and inside the coats steadily decreased by the minute. Soon, Marti was shivering again.

"I can't take it anymore," mumbled Scarlett, looking with wide, panicked green eyes into the storm. "I have to do _something,_" she whispered, looking down at Marti.

"We'll b-b-be ok-k-ay," assured Marti, trembling from the cold, but still indomitably cheerful and determined.

It had been nearly two days since Scarlett had stumbled up to the indent in the mountain. She was starving and tired and cold. Thirst was becoming an issue. Drinking cold water robbed them of precious heat. And now the thermos wasn't melting the snow she put in, because she had nothing to warm it with.

Scarlett closed her eyes, trying to calm the terror rising up in her stomach. _Now I have to do something. There is no other option. Either I wait up here and watch Marti die and then die myself, or we try to go back even in this weather. We might die trying. But at least we won't be waiting nervously for hypothermia to set in. _

"Marti, honey," she said softly.

"What, Letty?" asked Marti, her voice garbled.

"Do you want to try and go back?"

She nodded sleepily. "Will Daddy be there?"

Her heart breaking, Scarlett said, "Of course Daddy will be at the campsite. We'll se him when we walk in."

Marti heard the terrified note in her friend's voice. "Don't worry, Letty," she said confidently. "Smerek will find us."

Scarlett smiled weakly and secured Marti in place against her skin, underneath all of the coats, so that not even her feet poked out beneath them. As best she could, she insulated the coats against any breezes entering, and shrugged the backpack with difficulty onto her shoulders.

Then, taking a deep breath, she started out.

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Derek trudged through the wailing winds determinedly, for that was all he could do: plod. Plod, and trudge.

Edwin had remembered the direction Scarlett had gone. Derek, after a few seconds on it, had realized it was the trail they had hiked on that day.

Oh, how long ago that day seemed. That was the day when he'd kissed Scarlett. He remembered the soft feel of her lips on his...

Was that all she was going to be? A memory?

There were many confusing feelings surrounding Scarlett running through Derek's mind as he trudged through the snow. Why did he feel like he had lost an opportunity? As though something priceless was about to be removed from his reach forever?

And Marti. His Smarti. She was going to die if he didn't find her. He could only hope that Scarlett had found her, and that somehow they were both all right. Then he could bring them back.

But hours passed, and Derek's hands gradually turned a ghastly shade of bluish white underneath his gloves. Time was running out.

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"D-dad?" stuttered Edwin.

"What, Edwin?" asked George tiredly. There were dark circles under his eyes, and lines on his face that were premature and hadn't been there two days ago. Nora looked similarly.

"Derek's gone," he said quietly.

There was silence.

Finally, George pulled Edwin into a tight hug. He was having problems controlling himself. "You better not be going off anywhere. I can't lose you _all_."

"Derek will find them," said Sam confidently.

"I hope you're right," sighed Nora, rubbing her temples.

They were past the point of explosions and rants. All they could do now was pray, hope, and wait.

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The snow whipped around Derek in a maddened frenzy, driven by the never ending wind. He felt like he was going insane. There was nothing around him. Nothing but a bluish black canvas with a myriad of white, blowing dots on it. If he looked long enough, he thought he could see varying shades of the black- what he presumed to be trees. But eyes tend to play tricks on you.

He was now in very much the same situation as Scarlett, continuing on only by feel and memory, hoping that he was on the right track.

Ages past. Centuries flew by. All he knew was the endless drudgery and the determination that drove him onwards.

Then he heard something. A whisper on the wind.

"Smerek?"

A figment of his imagination.

"Is that you?"

A vaugely different tinted color was up ahead suddenly. _A mirage, _he nodded understandingly.

"Smerek!" it cried.

The blob was stumbling forward, slowly gaining shape and color as it neared. Stupidly he held out his arms as Marti crashed into him.

Comprehension dawned. "You're okay," he said softly, over and over again. "You're okay."

"Smerek I was so scared," she sobbed. "Letty told me that I had to walk the rest of the way by myself. I didn't want to, and she yelled at me! Letty yelled at me, Smerek. I was so scared!" Her cute little voice was trembling, and no wonder, with all she went through.

"Letty found you?" he said, slowly. The wind still howled around them, but Derek was deaf to all but his sister's voice.

"We stayed in the cave for a long time. And then she asked me if I wanted to go home. I wanted to see you, and Daddy, and Casey and Nora and Lizzie and Edwin and Sam. Letty was scared, and I told her you would come. And you came, Smerek!" she cried.

"I'll always come," he said, hugging her close. "Smarti, can you find Scarlett? Where is she?"

"Letty told me to go, and she gave me her coats. She yelled at me, and I ran, but I was so scared that I went back to find her."

"Where was she?" he asked patiently.

"Smerek, is Letty okay?" she asked, scared, her voice making Derek's stomach sink.

"She might be if I can find her," he answered. "Smarti, _where is she?_"

"Letty must have fell," she sobbed. "She was on the ground when I went back, and when I called her she didn't say anything."

Marti pulled him back to where she had been standing before, pushing valiantly through the deep snow and hard wind. Derek was only concious of one thought. _Please, God, let her be all right. Thank you for giving Marti back to me. Let Scarlett come back too._

Marti pointed to a white, raised area at their feet. Derek slowly recognized it was Scarlett. Snow was piling up on and around her.

She was sprawled out on the ground, her skin bare to the elements and bluer than Derek's. Her eyes were shut tightly, and a tear was frozen on her cheek.

Slowly he pulled off a glove, and with a shaking finger he reached out to touch her throat.

* * *

Dun dun dun… My version of a cliffhanger. Still didn't tell ya what I decided on. Bwuahahahahahaaaaahaaaaha.

Five more chapters tops. I'm shortening everything. There really shouldn't be a whole lot after the climax anyhow, right?


	11. Waking up

Just read, and hopefully enjoy!

* * *

Waking up and Recovery

Pain. Agonizing, all encompassing pain. That was all Scarlett felt, all she knew. There was no sentience, no thoughts- only the consciousness of her pain.

It was everywhere. Tingling, burning, acidic. She writhed against its fearsome attack, crying out, and still only aware of the feeling of her hurt.

Then, it was too much. Gentle waves of merciful nothingness washed over her, dissolving the agony and releasing her into the vegetative state.

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There it was again, pain. This time, though, some of her mind was present, and it wasn't all encompassing and terrible. Scarlett still remembered nothing of her struggle, but she was aware that there were things going on around her. Noises, mutterings. An infernal, muted beeping that refused to quit.

Exhaustion and a sort of feverish nausea overtook her, dispelling her vague wish to open her eyes.

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This time was better. Scarlett could open her eyes if she expended herself enough.

The room was white and sterile. She noticed with detached interest that several tubes ran from a machine into her body, still being much too tired and out of it to synthesize much of what was going on.

Her wandering gaze meandered leisurely over the plain little room, not focusing on anything in particular, but finally resting on a figure standing in the corner near the closed door. It was a guy, a tallish guy, who was hunched slightly, and turned somewhat away from her.

Something about his pose, something about the shape of him, stirred a distant memory within her languid mind.

"Derek?"

That was what she had meant to say. What came out was a low groan that vaguely resembled the name Derek; but you would never know unless you were listening for it.

His head whipped around like it had been pulled with a string suddenly, his eyes ultra wide. "Scarlett. Scarlett, wake up. You can do it!"

'I am awake,' she wanted to say. But all she could do was sigh tiredly and form a tiny smile, drifting back into peaceful slumber.

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When she next awoke, she was feeling considerably less tired and achy, and she remembered what her name was at least.

Had she dreamed about seeing Derek? she wondered idly. And how had she gotten into a hospital room?

Then her eyes fell upon the same figure as before. He was now seated in an uncomfortable looking chair next to her bed, his head bowed in his hands.

Scarlet felt reasonably certain that she could talk, and was pleased to find out that she could. "Derek?" she said softly (her volume not purposeful.)

He started up just as abruptly as before, and, after the few seconds it took for him to process the fact that she was awake, he crushed her in an uncomfortably tight hug.

Not really interested in the action, but tolerant of it, she gave a small protest at the pain of the needles in her being moved around, and submitted to the embrace.

"You made it," he said thickly.

For a second, Scarlett's still dormant brain was confused. Then, memory poured back to her in a flood.

It was suddenly very cold in the room., and Scarlett was very afraid of what could have happened. Marti could be dead. But she ignored her hysteria, now fully alert.

"You were crazy," he told her.

"I was," she agreed. "Was it worth it?" That was her way of asking if Marti had made it.

Her heart started beating again when he responded, "Thanks to me."

Derek looked like he regretted the jibe the second it was out of his mouth, but Scarlett (much to his surprise) smiled. It had been uttered in a purely teasing fashion, which she'd known, and it had made things seem normal again.

"Of course, I had nothing to do with it," she said, raising an eyebrow. Her voice was much fainter than she would have liked.

Frustrated, she cursed at her fatigue, and turned her head back to Derek. "How long?"

"Two weeks- you were in and out of the waking world, battling a fever and frostbite."

Involuntarily Scarlett looked at her hands. All the fingers were still there. She wiggled her toes. "I can feel my toes," she said cautiously. "But I hear that even after you get something amputated you still think its there."

Derek chuckled at her, smiling in a way that conveyed just how relieved he was that she was awake. "They didn't hack anything off, though they say you won't have any feeling in your right foot's last three toes."

"I can deal with that," she said gratefully. "Is the munchkin okay?"

He smiled at her again. It was like he couldn't stop. "She's mad as fire because they won't let her see you."

Scarlett tried to digest this, a puzzled expression on her face. "Well, if you're in here, why can't she be?" she asked.

"Well, actually-" began Derek uncomfortably, just as a portly nurse around forty opened the door.

"Get OUT!" she screeched, raising her clipboard like a weapon. "You determined patient killer, get out of here! How many times do I have to kick you out?! How do you get _in_? Why-"

Scarlett emitted a sound similar to a laugh, causing the nurse's head to snap around to look at her.

"Dearie, you're awake!" she exclaimed joyously, her voice completely changed from witchy to kindly.

However, Scarlett's amusement vanished after a few extraordinarily long seeming minutes of interrogation.

"How are you feeling? Tired, hungry, sore? Do you feel like you want to throw up?" The questions just kept coming, Scarlett really not even able to answer one before the next was thrown at her.

"What I really want to do is throw a pillow at you," she said crossly.

Oddly enough, the nurse's face was immediately wreathed in smiles. "Your mind is awake too! You've made _wonderful _progress, dearie! Now, you won't be able to eat anything solid for several days. Your system is still repairing itself. And you need to sleep!" Suddenly the nurse saw Derek standing there still, and pounced on him. "I thought I told you to _get out_!" she snapped.

"Okay, okay," he sighed, rolling his eyes. He smiled once more at Scarlett, and left the room.

The nurse began busily tidying Scarlett's bed and straightening the pillow under her head, presumably to make her more comfortable. It only made her more cross. "I'm not helpless, you know," she grumbled.

The nurse chuckled. "Honey, you're gonna be helpless for the next three days or more. Get used to it. Your body needs to heal, and that means you won't move much. You just got over a one hundred and five degree fever, you realize?"

Scarlett was stunned. "I did?"

"Miraculously, yes," avowed the nurse, still being busy around the room. "By the way, you've got a good one in that boy."

"What?" asked Scarlett, confused.

"Hush, hush, I'll tell you more later," said the nurse, beaming. "I want you to go to sleep now. If you want me for anything when you wake up, just call for Hailey or press the yellow button on your bed if you need to."

Then, to Scarlett's relief, she exited the room. The bubbly-ness was a little overpowering to someone who was just recovering from hypothermia and a high fever.

Although she was extremely curious about what the nurse meant by 'a good one,' and had no intention of going to sleep, the second the lights in the room dimmed she fell into a natural and deep sleep.

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Everything was strangely comfortable and pleasant. Scarlett had never felt so safe and warm in her life. Murmuring softly, for she was still mostly asleep, she turned over a little. Realizing pleasurably that the tubes and needles that had been stuck into her last time were removed **(A/N: never been in a hospital for anything serious before, so I really have no idea about all the procedures. If anything is critically wrong, tell me, and I'll revise this part.) **she moved with greater confidence.

No longer sleeping, for she was much too excited about being able to move, she stretched out a hand. It touched something soft. Curious, she stretched out her fingers farther and met with warm skin.

"If you continue touching my hair, I might have to kiss you," someone familiar warned.

Scarlett giggled. She _giggled_? _I don't giggle, _she thought, amazed. Shaking it off, she opened her eyes to see Derek looking at her intently.

She wrinkled her nose. "Do I look funny?" she asked.

"No, of course not," he said quickly.

Scarlett raised an eyebrow. He was a little too hasty. "Well, I did just recover from a fever and hypothermia, and I've been in bed for two weeks. It's to be expected."

Derek shrugged and held up a mirror.

Scarlett's tan had faded several shades, and there were shadows under her eyes. There was a faint line on her temple that foretold a scar. Her hair was mussed and frazzly, and her breath was no doubt kicking. _Stupid reality, _she groaned inwardly. In the movies the girl comes out of horribly impossible circumstances with her makeup on and not a mark on her, even as she's unconcious in the hospital.

When Derek saw her tracing the scar, he said: "Sorry about that. I dropped you once, and your head scraped against a rock. If it would have hit you a bit harder, we wouldn't be talking today. Sorry again. It was cold."

"_You_ came after us?" she said softly.

"Yeah," he said, a little sheepishly, "I did."

Scarlett's fingers played with the sheets. She didn't look at him. Desperately she wanted to know why, wanted to believe that it wasn't just Marti that he was concerned about. But she was far too proud and far too scared to leave herself open to be wounded. "Thanks. I guess I botched the job pretty good," she said lightly. Then, something disturbing occurred to her. "_You're _all right, right?"

He shrugged. "Losing a toe, my ring finger, and my pinky finger wasn't on my to do before I die list, but no big deal."

Horrified, she shot up in bed, ignoring the pain at her sudden movement. "You didn't!" she moaned.

He grinned, and said a little contritely, "Maybe I shouldn't have played you like that when you're sick."

It took a couple of seconds for that to register in Scarlett's brain. When it did, she growled menacingly: "_You._"

Wisely, Derek retreated out of reach and laughed at her.

"I'm gonna _kill_ you!" she exclaimed. She swung her legs around and put her feet on the cool tile floor.

"Don't get up," ordered Derek.

She grinned evilly at him. "Why? You think I'm going to spare you?" Then she got up.

And she fell backwards- straight into Derek's waiting arms.

Flashback

… _and she fell backwards- right into the strong, waiting, and laughing arms of a tall stranger. _

"_I'm having a bad enough day already," she snarled, "and if you don't let me go I swear I'll-"_

_The arms tightened. "You'll what? I think you're supposed to thank me."_

"_What? For laughing at me and making me look like an idiot?"_

"_Believe me, no girl seen in my company is an idiot. More along the lines of an envied or coveted hottie," came the arrogant rejoinder from the conceited and mysterious guy. _

_Scarlett forcibly extricated herself from his grasp and whirled to face her adversary. _

_As she had first expected, he was tall, muscular, and held himself with a cockiness that either infuriated or attracted girls eleven years old plus. What she had not expected was the most magnetic smirk that she had ever seen, and a pair of deep, rich, chocolate brown eyes that were flecked with crackling gold._

End of Flashback

"Remind you of something?" he whispered huskily.

Scarlett's stomach was doing jumping jacks.

"I _did _tell you not to," he said into her ear.

For a reason which Scarlett would rather have ignored, she couldn't find her voice.

He recognized this, and chuckled, turning her around in his grip so that she was facing him. _He's going to kiss me,_ thought Scarlett wildly, her green eyes wide.

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_I'm going to kiss her,_ thought Derek wildly, looking at her wide green eyes. _I _can't _kiss her. She just woke up. That's wrong. _

Exercising massive amounts of self-control, he led her back to her hospital bed and sat her down on it. "Sorry," he said, his voice very remorseful.

"Don't mention it," she said, turning away from him. Was she… upset?

_Nah. Just your hormones messing with your head._

"I'll let you get back to sleep," he said uncomfortably, and resisted the desire to lay a kiss on her forehead. By now, his weird impulses ceased to alarm him.

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Scarlett was sitting up in bed, in a different room than the one she had woken up in. This was a recovery room- and it had a TV in it.

She'd just been moved in yesterday, and today she was supposed to be able to have visitors, but the TV was just too novel. Two weeks without a TV… come on!

A little blur of color shot into the room like a bullet, leaping dramatically onto the bed to smother Scarlett in a hug.

"Letty!" screeched Marti.

Scarlett laughed and hugged her back.

The rest of the gang (except Derek) filed into the tiny room, all shifting around uncomfortably and congratulating her on her recovery. Casey jabbed Sam in the ribs, who grimaced and handed Scarlett a little flower bundle that said "Thanks- and Welcome Back!" on a little plate in the middle. Scarlett smiled and thanked him, looking at Casey a few seconds later and chuckling.

Lizzie and Edwin were awkwardly relieved and very happy to see her, and loosened up after a few lighthearted comments. George grinned at her and thanked her profusely, and then backed out of the room. Nora was a little more open. "We owe you Marti's life," she said, trying to hold back tears as she hugged her.

Scarlett smiled up at the older woman. "She would have been fine," she said. "Derek would have gotten her."

"Gotten who?" piped Marti, who was still on Scarlett's lap.

"No one, munchkin," she smiled, and tickled her.

"All right, everyone out! Scarlett needs her rest," said Nora, shooing everyone.

Marti's lower lip was thrust out. "I don't _want _to go!" she pouted.

Scarlett looked at Nora, who nodded. Then she said softly to Marti, "I don't let people who are mean to others stay with me."

This was a revelation to Marti. After a few minutes of careful deliberation, she found Scarlett's approval to be worth more than the attention a tantrum would elicit.

"Sorry, Nora," she said sullenly.

Nora grinned. "Its okay, Marti," she assured, and left.

Marti had instantly forgotten her, as she had discovered the remote. Giggling in delight, she flipped the station to Dora the Explorer.

"What do you think you're doing?" demanded Scarlett, incensed.

Marti's face trembled as she prepared to break into a purposefully heartbraking storm of tears. "D-d-do I h-have to ch-change it, L-letty?"

_How can you resist that?! _thought Scarlett in dismay. "I like Dora," she sighed, lying.

"I _knew _you would!" giggled Marti, completely aware of how well she'd played her best friend and satisfied with her work.

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She slurped up the last bit of the orange juice, and tore her gaze away from the seeming billions of NS5s crawling up the side of the glass building to look at her food. She gazed longingly at the bagel with cream cheese and marmalade jam on it. _No, _she told herself firmly. _Bagels are the worse thing on the face of the earth for you. _**(A/N: they really are. They have all the calories of a whole meal or something equally amazing, and they have NO nutritional value, and they stick like glue in your intestines. But MAN, are they good!) **_Until you start exercising again, no junk food. _

Derek entered the room, and solved her problem for her. Resentfully she watched him down the bagel in three bites, glad that the temptation was removed but ticked that he would have the audacity. When he reached for her soup bowl, she smacked his hand. "I'm going to eat that," she said warningly.

"Not if I get to it first," he laughed.

Scarlett gave him a darkling look, and then her brow cleared as a plan came to her. "Don't go for it again," she warned smugly.

He rolled his eyes and went for it.

"HAILEY!" she yelled.

Derek's eyes widened. "You didn't," he said.

"I did," she affirmed.

Flashback

_Scarlett had turned around and began eating her breakfast. He strode over to her and threw her up onto his shoulder before she realized what was happening. _

_Once she did realize what had happened, she immediately began to protest- violently. "Put me down, you idiot!" she screamed, kicking and beating at his back. _

_Everyone's faces convulsed as Derek's intention became clear. He paid no attention whatsoever to Scarlett's thrashings, walking with long and purposeful steps over the dirt track that served as a road, onto the green grass, and to a ledge that hung over the lake. Every single person's eyes followed their progress, even though said eyes were a little blocked with tears of mirth. _

_Once he reached the ledge, he slid her slight form into a cradle hold, and looked at her. _

_Her green eyes were even larger than normal, turning to brilliant and rock hard emeralds in warning. "You dare…" she hissed under her breath. _

"_I dare," he affirmed, and tossed her into the lake._

End of Flashback

"Remind you of something?" she asked sweetly.

Oh, how wonderful is Revenge.

Hailey burst into the room, and spotting Derek, sent a dagger glare at him. "Get. Out," she hissed savagely.

Scarlett blew him a kiss as Hailey began to beat Derek with her clipboard. Just in case looks could kill, Scarlett averted her eyes from his face.

This Revenge was _particularly_ sweet.

She settled back into her bed with a blissful sigh of contentment, listening to the pleasant melody of Hailey's snickers with an air of accomplishment.

* * *

I'm trying to wrap this story up and have a satisfactory conclusion, but it may be a little while before I tie all the loose ends and figure out how to make it work. Thanks! 

Please review!


	12. AN

Hey everyone! I finally figured out what I'm going to do with this story- I'm going to make a second one to continue it. I didn't feel like making a thirty some chapter long story, but I did want to finish it despite the amazingly low number of people seeming to read. Thanks much to those who did review- I appreciate every single one of them.

I would like (actually love) for there to be 20 reviews at least. I'm going to post the final chapter to this part of the story (hopefully) soon. You can review and tell me how you like where the story is going so far.

Thanks!


	13. Caramel Brownies

I didn't think I'd get anywhere close to twenty. Thank you, Aye sea turtles and napd567, so much!

* * *

Caramel Brownies

Derek had taken to bringing Marti in to see her, and always stayed a while (just to make sure Marti was behaving, of course).

This was the third day she'd been in the hospital. While talking to Hailey, Scarlett had learned some very flattering tidbits.

"That boy was sneaking in here every other day," laughed Hailey, her rolls of fat shivering with her mirth. "Well, he was probably in here more than that. I only _caught_ him every other day."

Scarlett was turning pink with pleasure, much to her alarm. "Anything else?"

"Actually, I thought it was amazing that he wouldn't touch you. He just sat there and watched you toss and turn, with this stupid expression on his face."

"Stupid expression?" asked Scarlett, dismayed.

"Yeah, like a puppy would look at his mom if she was dying."

_Okay, weird analogy…_

Just then, Derek and Marti walked in, Marti on his shoulders. Hailey laughed quietly to herself and watched the trio's antics.

Derek sat down on the corner of Scarlett's bed. She pushed him off, and Marti giggled in delight as Scarlett scooped her up and gave her a high five.

_They look like a family,_ thought Hailey.

Just then her pager beeped, recalling her to her duties. "There is a message for your patient from her mother," it crackled.

"Oh, right," said Hailey, and turned to Scarlett. "You've got a message from your mom," she said, and moved to put it on speaker.

"Don't-" began Scarlett, her voice sharp. But it was too late.

Her mother's monotonous tones cut her off. "Hey hun," she said distractedly. "I heard something had happened to you, but I know you're with the Venturis and they'll take care of everything. The doctors sent me the documents and I signed them all. I hope they weren't anything bad, since I didn't read them, but I suppose a doctor wouldn't do anything like that. Anyways, I had a business meeting and your father was- away- again. I won't be able to pick you up, but you'll figure something out. Hey, you know the guy that came over a few weeks ago? He's decided to invest!" The recording continued, Molly blabbering on and on about her business.

"Sorry," said Hailey in a subdued tone. "That was thoughtless of me." Then she awkwardly shuffled out of the room.

Derek looked over at Scarlett's face cautiously. It was impassive, blank; but the two brittle emerald eyes and the glassiness of them told him all he needed to know.

Marti looked up at Scarlett consideringly for a moment. "I want your mommy," she said suddenly, "to get hypothermia and a fever."

Scarlett, after a long moment of indecision, laughed.

Marti nodded self-satisfactorily, and bounced off the bed. "Now Smerek will kiss you, and you'll be very happy again," she announced, and skipped out of the room.

Derek looked over at Scarlett and smirked at her. "Marti seems to have her brother's intelligence," he said.

"I think she does, heaven pity the girl. And wipe that smirk off your ugly little face," she snapped, "or I'll do it for you."

He instantly complied, his expression suddenly smoldering, and advanced on her.

Alarmed by the sudden intensity of his gaze, Scarlett shrank back a little. "What're you doing?" she asked nervously as he sat down on the bed next to her, and placed a hand on the other side of her.

"Following orders," he chuckled, and closed the distance between them.

Scarlett's arms wrapped around Derek's neck, (since she really didn't have anywhere else to put them, she reasoned) and his hands connected behind her back, pulling her closer.

It was a wonderfully long eternity before they broke apart. Derek smirked again at her, and she crossed her arms in mock anger.

"We'll take you home, you know," he said.

Scarlett looked at him, confused, for a few seconds. Then her brow cleared. "I'd completely forgotten about that," she said naively.

Scarlett glanced at him, and saw with annoyance that the smirk was back.

She protested mildly when he closed in to seize her lips again, and was therefore effectively silenced. He let her go eventually, but stayed right in her face. "If you _ever_," he said, trailing a finger along her jaw line, "call me ugly again, I'll make you regret the day you met me."

Staring into his rich golden brown eyes, Scarlett muttered somewhat incoherently, "I already regret it." Then, after another long kiss, she mumbled, "I need some caramel brownies."

* * *

Ok, it was a little short. Sorry. And I won't be putting Part 2 up for more than a week, because I'm driving back home from Colorado soon, and I don't have a laptop. Or internet in the car, for that matter.

Woops, I'm rambling again. Sorry.

Reviews are majorly appreciated, hint hint!!!


	14. AN 2, last one I promise!

Okay, real sorry for not getting the sequel started, but I was driving back home and it took a _really _long time. And then I had to go to my cousins house and do all this stuff and… well, you get the picture. Anyways, the sequel is now up!!

Why are you still here? Go read it!

(please?)


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